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The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), in partnership with the WestEd Justice and Prevention Research Center (JPRC), has received funding from the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to develop a statewide Continuum of Care for Communities model for Pennsylvania. This initiative aims to provide actionable recommendations for diverting youth from the juvenile justice system toward community-based services and alternatives to detention.

To inform this statewide model, WestEd is seeking collaboration with Pennsylvania Juvenile Justice stakeholder groups to gather insights and evidence-based recommendations.

Their goal is to develop actionable recommendations for diverting youth from formal justice system involvement and to strengthen community-based services, drawing on the expertise and experience of local stakeholders. As someone involved in juvenile justice and juvenile justice-adjacent systems, your insights will be invaluable in shaping recommendations and identifying promising local practices.

What’s Involved: You are invited to join an engagement session to discuss:

  • Local prevention and diversion strategies, strengths, and gaps; and
  • Recommendations and best practices for serving youth and families across the continuum of care.

Session Details:

  • Duration: 90 minutes
  • Format: Virtual (calendar invite and Zoom link to be provided upon RSVP)

Session Options

  • Community Service Providers: January 8, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EST
    • Includes: Violence Intervention Programs, Restorative Justice organizations, Faith-based organizations, Foster Care Agencies, Housing and Homelessness Services, Workforce Development Agencies, Child and Family Advocacy – Rights and Policy Reform, Residential Placement staff, etc.
    • Register Here
  • Courts and Related Departments: January 9, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EST
    • Includes: Judges, Magistrates, District Attorneys, Public Defenders, Probation, Children and Youth, CASA, Youth Aid Panels, etc.
    • Register Here
  • Victims’ Services: January 23, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EST
  • Education: January 27, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EST
    • Includes: School and District-level Administration, Faculty, Psychologists, Counselors and Social Workers, Student Assistance Programs, and School Security Personnel
    • Register Here
  • Mental and Behavioral Health & Substance Use Treatment: January 30, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EST
    • Includes: Mental Health, Behavioral Health and Substance Use Treatment Providers, Residential or Community-based
    • Register Here
  • Law Enforcement & Crisis Response: February 4, 2026, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm EST
    • Includes: Police Officers, School Resource Officers, Detectives, Emergency Responders, Crisis Responders, Medical Personnel
    • Register Here
  • Families & Loved Ones with Experience Supporting Youth in the Juvenile Justice System (Past or Present): February 4, 2026, 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm EST
    • Includes: Family members, friends, caregivers, and loved ones with past or present experience supporting their youth navigate the juvenile justice system
    • Register Here
  • Youth with Lived Experience Navigating the Juvenile Justice System: February 11, 2026, 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm EST
    • Includes: Youth with juvenile justice or children and youth/foster care experience, ages 25 and under
    • Register Here

Your participation will not only contribute to improving outcomes for youth and families but also ensure that the report and recommendations reflect the needs and realities of your community.

If you are able to attend, please take 2–3 minutes to fill out the RSVP link connected to the session you wish to attend — please plan to attend one session. This will ensure you a spot and send you a calendar invite and Zoom link.  Please feel free to share this email and flyer within any of your networks as well.

Lastly, if you have any questions, please reach out via email.

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The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS), in partnership with the Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC), is offering upcoming trainings focused on strengthening housing partnerships and improving coordinated responses for unsheltered individuals with behavioral health needs.

Partnership with Public Housing Authorities (PHA): Best Practice Strategies for Stronger Collaboration
Date/Time: Thursday, January 22, 2026, 10:00 am – 11:30 am
Registration Here

This 90-minute interactive training is designed for housing and service system leaders seeking to strengthen and sustain effective partnerships with Public Housing Authorities (PHA). This session will highlight strategies to improve communication and alignment between PHAs and county systems, approaches for sustaining partnerships during times of system change, and an overview of standard PHA regulations and available flexibilities. The training will include facilitated breakout discussions for participants to share real-world strategies, lessons learned, and best practices with colleagues across communities.

  • Trainers: Jim Yates (MPA), Liz Stewart, and Jordan Gulley (LICSW), Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC)
  • Open to: County Housing Coordinators­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Building Coordinated Responses for Unsheltered Individuals With Behavioral Health Needs
TAC will conduct two 90-minute trainings exploring best practices for coordinated, compassionate, and effective responses to support individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness with significant behavioral health needs.

Session 1: Trauma-Informed Outreach, Collaboration, and Engagement Strategies
Date/Time: Monday, January 26, 2026, 9:30 am – 11:00 am
Registration Here

The first session will highlight practical models and partnerships that enhance trauma-informed outreach, crisis diversion, and person-centered engagement. It will include approaches that reduce law enforcement interactions and improve cross-system coordination to ensure wraparound supports and an array of housing options for individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) and co-occurring conditions.

  • Trainers: Ashley Mann-McLellan (MPH) and Jordan Gulley (LICSW), Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC)
  • Open to: County staff overseeing direct care outreach and homelessness response providers; county supported housing and homelessness providers; PATH staff; outreach staff; county housing coordinators
  • To be announced: Regionally based Communities of Practice (CoP) will be announced following this training, focused on best-practice outreach/engagement strategies and cross-sector partnerships for staff providing direct care or supervising programs supporting unsheltered individuals.

Session 2: System Approaches to Unsheltered Homelessness and Encampment Responses
Date/Time: Thursday, February 26, 2026, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm
Registration Here

The second session will provide a foundational understanding of encampment dynamics and encampment resolution, including an overview of decommissioning practices. Emphasis will be placed on humane and coordinated approaches that prioritize connection to services and pathways to stable housing. The webinar will highlight the critical role of cross-sector partnerships (Continuum of Care (CoC), PATH, behavioral health, outreach teams, law enforcement, local government entities, advocates) and will explore targeted housing navigation strategies that support long-term stability beyond clearance efforts.

  • Trainers: Ashley Mann-McLellan (MPH) and Jordan Gulley (LICSW), Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC)
  • Open to: County and municipal leaders, including County Mental Health Administrators; County Human Services Directors; County Housing and Homelessness Service Administrators; Coordinated Entry Leads and Continuum of Care (CoC) leadership; PATH program staff; outreach providers and behavioral health directors; outreach supervisors; housing program managers; Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services-designated program leadership
  • To be announced: A statewide Community of Practice (CoP) will be scheduled following this training, focused on collaborative learning for county and municipal leaders implementing systemic responses to unsheltered homelessness for individuals with SMI. Dates will be announced soon.

Questions and Comments can be directed to the OMHSAS housing inbox.

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Message from National Core Indicators:

The NCI-IDD SoTW is the most comprehensive data on Direct Support Professional (DSP) workforce providing direct services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). We remain committed to partnering with states, agencies, and people with IDD to use these data to strengthen Medicaid-funded services and supports and ensure DSPs are valued for their essential role supporting people with IDD.

A few report highlights:

In 2024, we collected data from 3,936 provider agencies representing 344,179 DSPs in 26 states and the District of Columbia. The data for 2024 suggest some positive trends for the state of the IDD DSP workforce. For example:

  • Across the nation, the median hourly wage for DSPs is $18.39, which is more than a dollar increase from the median hourly wage of $17.20 in 2023.
  • The weighted average turnover ratio was 37%, with nearly two in three DSPs who left their employers (64%) having been with their agency for less than one year.
  • On average, 26% of agencies report they turned away or stopped accepting referrals due to staffing issues, down from 38% in 2023.

State DD agencies have worked tirelessly to address the ongoing workforce shortages for DSPs, and these data suggest slight but hopeful trends in key indicators. Altogether, NCI-IDD SoTW provide valuable insights about opportunities to enhance retention of DSPs and improve the continuity of services.

The full report can be found here at this link.

For questions or comments, please contact Tim Sohosky.

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The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has shared ODPANN 25-114. This communication notifies all interested parties of the recorded webinar that explained the January 2026 Waiver Amendments. This webinar and is now posted on the MyODP website.

The webinar contains a brief high-level overview of Performance-Based Contracting as well as changes not related to Performance-Based Contracting that impact ODP’s Consolidated, Community Living, and Person/Family Directed Supports (P/FDS) waivers.

Please review the announcement for more details.

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The agenda and link to join the January 7, 2026, Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Subcommittee meeting have been released. The call on January 7, 2026, will be held via webinar and remote streaming only and will take place from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.

A few of the key agenda topics, in addition to an update from the Office of Long-Term Living’s (OLTL) Deputy Security, include information being shared by OLTL on the 2026 OBRA Waiver renewal and the Community HealthChoices (CHC) Waiver amendment. Additionally, there will be a presentation from OLTL’s Enrollment Unit on enrollment and redeterminations/data requests.

To participate in the meeting, the information is below:
Conference line — Bridge Number: 1 (415) 655-0052 PIN: 571-523-182#
Webinar Link
Remote Streaming Link

Comments and questions may be sent electronically.

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Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

Medetomidine is a veterinary sedative, similar to xylazine, that was first found in Philadelphia’s drug supply in May 2024. Since then, it has spread across Pennsylvania. Medetomidine is 100-200 times more potent than xylazine and can cause longer-lasting sedation, low heart rates, and more severe withdrawal symptoms. It is not an opioid but is found in the illicit drug supply.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) is seeking information about complications associated with medetomidine in the drug supply. DOH is particularly interested in SUD treatment providers’ responses to the following.

  • Are you seeing an influx in clients presenting with worsening withdrawal symptoms (e.g., racing heart, severe nausea, high blood pressure, tremors, confusion)?
  • Are you seeing an increase in clients leaving against medical advice?
  • Have you had to send clients to the hospital because their symptoms required a higher level of care?
  • Are there any other changes you are noticing in your community that you think DOH should know about?

You can email your responses to DOH Senior Harm Reduction Technical Advisor Roseanne Scotti or RCPA SUD Treatment Policy Director Jason Snyder.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) is offering a new virtual format for the clinical supervision training.

This instructor-led virtual training builds on foundational coursework and gives participants the opportunity to practice clinical supervision skills, along with tools to support assessment and effective work with supervisees.

The next session will be held daily at 9:00 am – 4:00 pm Monday, January 26, through Friday, January 30.

Log into DDAP’s Training Management System (TMS) to request a virtual seat and review registration and payment instructions for the $300 training. Payment must be submitted by check or money order, as detailed in TMS. Space is limited, and registrations are processed in the order received.

Completion of the Clinical Supervision Training Foundations course, available on demand through TMS, is required before enrolling.

Clinical supervisors and lead counselors with less than two years of supervisory experience are required to complete the core curriculum offering in TMS or a DDAP-approved core curriculum in clinical supervision.

Please send any questions electronically.

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The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) has shared ODPANN 25-113. This communication includes an updated version of the Intellectual Disability/Autism (ID/A) Individual Support Plan Signature Form (DP 1032) that was released with the ODP Announcement 25-012: Updates to the Individual Support Plan (ISP) Bulletin Attachments. After the release, ODP was informed that the MCI Number and the individual’s name needed to be added to each page of the form. This form has also been translated into Spanish.

The revised and translated forms may be found on the MyODP Forms page.

Questions about this communication should be directed to the appropriate Office of Developmental Programs Regional Office.

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