Rising to the COVID-19 Challenge: Responses from NYS Community Action Agencies

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As this report will demonstrate, CAAs continued to operate during the worst of the pandemic, stepped up, never faltered, and met the needs of their communities with compassion, skill, and grace. This intense and seemingly never-ending work took its toll on direct service workers who could see the stress and unease in their customers’ faces, which often mirrored their own anxieties. Managers and Directors had to navigate ever-changing and contradictory state and federal guidelines and rules.

But, with crisis comes opportunity, and CAAs took advantage. They streamlined customer intake processes to make it easier and less burdensome.They designed and developed new methods to continue to engage customers, such as through remote classrooms and support groups, even offering unique prescription and grocery pick-up services. They augmented existing partnerships and developed new coalitions to deliver food, conduct outreach, and provide crucial support to families with low-income disproportionately affected by the pandemic. They made changes to their facilities and offices to ensure the safety of staff and customers. Many of these changes will continue into our “new normal.” But one thing will always remain: CAAs will search for these in-person connections with their customers and partners to build trusting and impactful relationships.

We at NYSCAA are incredibly proud of our network’s willingness to embrace change in the face of adversity and admire the nimble dance agencies made to ensure the operational policies and procedures and the service delivery changes implemented not only protected their employees and customers but also served clients well during the challenging weeks and months, lasting into years. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to highlight all of NY CAAs in this report. Community Action Agencies have shined during the pandemic, and we want to ensure those efforts are recognized in this report.

Click here to view the report.