Success Stories
Community-based program serves foster youth after they turn 18
Every year, hundreds of youth in Arizona turn 18 while in foster care and don’t have family support. Once foster youth age out, case management services end, which means that the teens lose support for housing, employment, education, and advocacy for physical and mental health services. Compared with their peers, youth who leave the foster care system without support are at higher risk to experience homelessness, incarceration, substance abuse, early parenthood and other...
The Arizona Department of Child Safety implemented a program in January 2024 to help foster youth who have no family support successfully transition to adulthood and...
Engaging decision makers for Arizonans with serious mental illness
The Office of Human Rights at the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) provides individuals living with a Serious Mental Illness designation with advocacy to help them understand, protect, and exercise their rights. Contact and engagement with health care decision makers is critical to helping OHR facilitate self-advocacy through education and help individuals access behavioral health services.
In 2023, 102 AHCCCS members qualified for serious mental...
This gap, coupled with community feedback, highlighted the need to analyze and optimize processes to provide targeted education to health care decision makers. Going...
Engaging the community in improving Queen Creek water quality
Queen Creek supports wildlife and tourism in the mountains near Superior and Globe, Arizona. Within the watershed, several creeks and drainages have been impacted for years by dissolved copper from historic mines. Dissolved metals are more easily absorbed by fish and other aquatic organisms, which may lead to reduced reproduction, physical abnormalities or stunted growth for native fish and other wildlife. This can cascade to affect the biodiversity of the entire area.
In 2022, ADEQ undertook the significant responsibility of initiating the process for the creation of the Queen Creek total maximum daily load (TMDL) for copper and lead...
Helping first responders navigate state buildings
Prior to the 911inform implementation, it could be challenging for first responders to navigate through an unfamiliar location at a state agency or know which floor, suite or office to respond to during a call—losing critical time during emergencies.
The 911inform team worked for months to implement a solution to be in compliance with federal law and to make it easier for first responders navigating state buildings...
Making real estate complaints accessible in 400+ languages
The Arizona Department of Real Estate oversees real estate licensees and land developers and investigates complaints made by Arizonans, among many other duties. Consumers contact the Department of Real Estate when they feel they have been harmed in a real estate transaction. Complaints can take the form of advertising violations, kickback schemes that drive up the cost of buying a home, hidden defects like covering black mold with new drywall and even the complete theft of a...
The agency started looking into translation and transcription services in early February 2024 and were able to negotiate and sign a contract with a statewide vendor...