Children, Adults and Families Division (CAF)

1. Policy/Program - Deputy Assistant DHS Director Michael Serice
2. Field Services - Deputy Assistant DHS Director Jim Neely

CAF Policy/Program Group

Self-sufficiency and child safety

• Child-care subsidy programs
  Programs such as Employment Related Day Care and JOBS child care help low-income working families and people in the JOBS Program pay for their child care

• Child-protective services
  Investigates and intervenes in cases of abuse and neglect

• Family-Based Services
  Supports the safety of children in the home, and counsels and trains parents

• The Food Stamp Program
  Helps Oregonians feed themselves and their families

• The JOBS Employment and Training Program
  Prepares people for the workplace and helps them find work

• Prevention programs
  Helps young people make positive choices and avoid behaviors that put them at risk

• TANF
  Provides cash benefits for low-income families with children

Permanency for children

• Foster care
  Provides care for children removed from their homes while the parents, DHS and other agencies work toward reuniting the family

• Adoption programs
  Permanently place children with other families when they cannot return to their parents

CAF Field Services Group

CAF Field Services is responsible for providing benefits and services to clients for the majority of DHS programs.

The field structure was designed so that clients can have their multiple needs addressed without having to visit a number of different DHS offices. Case planning for clients is done collaboratively, to avoid conflicting requirements between various programs.

Field Services operates more than 110 offices across the state and employs more than half of the department's staff.

• Field structure

Services are delivered through sixteen service delivery areas (SDAs), each headed by an SDA manager. In addition, each SDA has senior program managers, who have expertise in specific program areas. Service-delivery staff members in field offices retain their current specialization while working more closely with staff from other programs.

Rehabilitation Services

The Office of Vocational Rehabilitation Services works with businesses, schools and community programs to help people with disabilities prepare for and find employment

Central office

Within central office, the Office of Operational Support provides assistance to the SDA managers and field offices. They serve as the connection between the program-and-policy groups and the field, to ensure policies are effectively implemented in the local offices and to help accomplish policy-related changes requested by the field.

Field Services also includes the following:

• The Direct Pay Unit
  Processes payments for providers of services to DHS clients
• Oregon Health Plan Eligibility
  Processes applications and determines eligibility for the Oregon Health Plan
• Quality Control for the Food Stamp Program
  Investigates possible client fraud
• Volunteer services for clients
  Helps with needs such as medical transportation and donations of household and other items

See also the Children, Adults & Families organization chart