Center for Community Solutions

What it reported doing in 2024

Legal, Counseling, and Advocacy Services (LCAS): Legal ServicesUnder the supervision of the Legal Services Director, a team of California-licensed attorneys and legal advocates, serves survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault and is the largest no-cost legal team in San Diego County. CCS legal services include: Intimate Partner Violence Services (IPVS): IPVS services are provided in East, Central, and North San Diego County. Attorneys provide restraining order assistance every week at the El Cajon Courthouse, and pro per family law as well as at all CCS business office locations, including filling out paperwork, client consultations, and hearing preparation. Legal advocates provide crisis counseling, safety planning, intimate partner violence lethality assessments, court accompaniment, application assistance, information, referrals, and emotional support to victims of intimate partner violence. Advocates utilize their significant community connections to help survivors access safe housing, legal services, counseling, immigration services, food, clothing, and other support services. This free, confidential service is available in English and Spanish, with additional languages, including sign languages, provided by certified interpreter services.Legal Assistance for Victims: The Legal Services Director and staff attorneys, LAV provides civil legal remedies and direct representation for victims of sexual assault. CCS specializes in the civil legal needs of sexual assault victims in the following areas: housing, employment, education, privacy, safety, andfinancial compensation, as well as Civil Harassment Restraining Orders. The program assists survivors with immigration concerns through a subcontract with Casa Cornelia Law Center. CCS is San Diego's go-to legal services program for privacy law (representing victims in criminal court), and Title IX issues (sexual violenceas discrimination) throughout the County. These services are the only sexual assault-specific direct representation legal services program in San Diego County.High Risk Teams: CCS attorneys also coordinate San Diego County's Central, East, and North High-Risk Teams, a multidisciplinary response team that includes law enforcement, the City and District Attorneys Offices, several intimate partner violence service providers, and Probation. This team meets monthly in eachregion to collaborate and conduct case reviews in order to increase the safety of victims who are at serious risk of intimate partner violence-related homicide.Counseling Services: CCS Clinical Director (LMFT) leads a team of licensed and pre-licensed therapists to address the traumatic impacts of intimate partner violence and sexual assault. The Counseling Services team also includes Child/Youth advocates who support children impacted by abuse and nurture the health of the entire familysystem. Services include: Trauma-Specific Counseling: CCS operates counseling programs in North, Central, and East County. Skilled Staff Therapists provides individual, group, family, and child counseling using a variety of best practice, trauma-specific approaches, including trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), Trauma Resiliency Model (TRM), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), guided imagery, expressive arts therapy, play therapy, sand tray therapy, and mindfulness therapies. Our counseling program includes masters-level Marriage and Family Therapy, Social Work, or Professional Clinical Counselor trainees receive intensive training, supervision, and commit twenty hours per week to CCS.Child Abuse Treatment: The program offers trauma-specific therapy and advocacy services to address the effects of trauma. CCS focuses on the childs strengths, and where the child needs support to improve their coping strategies and opportunities for healthy life choices. All services are available in English and Spanish.The program serves children who are under the age of 18 and victims

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 68.6%; rating input score 69
• Program expense ratio: 72.1%; rating input score 72
• Fundraising efficiency: $10.32 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 5.1%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.16; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.29; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 14.7%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 3.9% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 43rd percentile among comparable filings