OhioRISE care coordinator Vicky Filtz saw quite a few familiar faces when OhioRISE joined in the Back to School Bash hosted by the Urban Mission of Steubenville Aug. 15.
Jefferson County Educational Service Center (JCESC) OhioRISE (Resilience through Integrated Systems and Excellence) is a Medicaid managed care program for children and youth with complex behavioral health and multisystem needs in Jefferson, Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Monroe, Stark, and Tuscarawas Counties and operated by the Jefferson County Educational Service Center. OhioRISE was formed to coordinate resources and put families in touch with what is available.
JCESC is located on Sunset Boulevard only a few minutes away from the Urban Mission. Filtz heard from parents and families as they described the challenges facing their young people, and she shared information about the range of services OhioRISE has to offer. She said the information was very popular with attendees, and many families were familiar with the program.
“We serve a lot of the students here in Jefferson County and we work in the majority of the schools across the county as well, so we’re just glad to be here, a part of today getting everybody back to school and making sure they have the supplies that they need and access to the service that they might need throughout the year.”
Filtz said OhioRISE works closely with the staffs of area schools.
“Anything that they’re identifying as a need at the school that carries over into a community service,” she said, adding the schools work with OhioRISE care coordinators, who help families get community access to different services that positively impact their education to help make them successful.
Filtz said care coordinators will often attend back to school events and pick up supplies for a child when the family is unable to come.
One parent praised the program, saying OhioRISE has been “amazing” and her family’s care coordinator has formed a close relationship and is an excellent communicator with her children, who have autism. She said OhioRISE has helped to make a “breakthrough” with her children and has assisted in obtaining sensory toys and other coping items.
Other parents shared their experiences of how OhioRISE connected them with services.
Cynthia Lytle, Director of Community Engagement for the Urban Mission, said JCESC’s services and those of the Urban Mission work together to bring resources to families, and JCESC is always a welcome participant.
“We’ve had a great partnership with them over the years. They’ve been a mainstay for the Back to School Bash,” she said. “We can count on them to come and participate in the day and just connect with the community, connect them to resources and information. Any year that OhioRISE or Educational Service Center can be a part, we are grateful.”
She said the Urban Mission was glad to see OhioRISE join in this important opportunity for outreach.
“That’s why opportunities like this are so important for our community. When agencies come out to connect with a community, they make them aware of resources and services in our area.”
Vice Principal Deanna Beall of Steubenville High School said OhioRISE has been a boon for the Steubenville City Schools.
“We as a district love to work with OhioRISE. They’re such a great resource for the students for behavioral health purposes. The kids really benefit. The caseworkers are able to come into the schools as well as carry over into the home environment,” she said. Close bonds form between care coordinators and students. “It builds a bridge between for the students and the families and the school.”
She said the school district began implementing OhioRISE soon after the program’s inception two years ago.
“They have been a great resource for not only the families but also the school system, navigating behavioral health and mental illness in the schools.”
OhioRISE has proven a welcome benefit for area agencies. Abby Corder, community marketing representative with the CareSource managed care plan said when OhioRISE began two years ago, CareSource established a department dedicated to working with the program.
“We work very closely to make sure that nothing falls through the cracks,” she said, adding feedback has been very positive. “Our case managers work very closely with their case managers.”
Mara Jackson, family partnership center coordinator with Head Start of Jefferson and Columbiana Counties said they have worked closely with OhioRISE.
“We just utilize them the best that we can for our families that are in need,” Jackson said. “They come in and they’ll work with the kids in the classroom. Observe them in the classroom and see what kind of services they might need outside of the classroom, then they meet with our supervisors via Zoom, and they provide a lot of help to our families.”
Anyone interested in becoming a care coordinator, please apply at https://jcescvla.bamboohr.com/careers/23.
To learn more about OhioRISE, call 740-792-4011, email ohiorise.info@jcesc.org or visit OhioRISE online at https://www.jcesc.k12.oh.us/CareManagementEntity.aspx
