Five Riverside County Programs Receive Awards from CSAC

Riverside County is delivering award-winning programs that save babies' lives, help deal with stress caused by the pandemic and provide educational resources.  The County of Riverside received five prominent awards – the second highest number of awards given to any county in the state – from the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) 2021 Challenge Awards.  

Among the departments that received recognition are public health, behavioral health, the library system and housing and workforce solutions.

"These achievements demonstrate our county’s commitment to public service and set a model of leadership," said Riverside County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Karen Spiegel, District 2 Supervisor. "Congratulations to these departments for these award-winning programs." 

The following Riverside County programs are being honored:

 CHALLENGE AWARD - RUHS-Public Health Perinatal Equity Initiative
The Riverside University Health System-Public Health (RUHS-PH) Maternal Child and Adolescent Health’s (MCAH) PEI program addresses the causes of persistent inequality and identifies best practices to eliminate disparities in infant mortality within the African American population in Riverside County.

CHALLENGE AWARD - Take My Hand Live Peer Chat
Riverside University Health System-Behavioral Health rapidly deployed peer support live chat to engage essential workers along with community members experiencing stressors and uncertainty during a global pandemic.

MERIT AWARD - P3 Library Projects
A public, private, partnership delivered three new libraries in French Valley, Menifee and Desert Hot Springs that utilized a  simultaneous construction approach to save taxpayers time and money. 

MERIT AWARD - Library Connect
Library Connect delivers enhanced mobile library services including STEAM programs, computers, Wi‐Fi and resources to underserved  communities.  

MERIT AWARD - Humanitarian Aid to Asylum Seekers
Riverside County’s Asylum Seeker Response supports overflows to neighboring border cities and provides humanitarian aid to families seeking sanctuary in the United States to prevent hundreds of street releases and homelessness.

Last year, Riverside County received four awards including the Challenge Award for the Cover Your Face Campaign to slow the spread of Covid-19.

CSAC’s annual statewide program honors innovation and best practices in county government. This year, CSAC received 433 entries – the most in the program’s history. An independent panel of judges with expertise in county programs selected the award recipients.

For more information on these programs and the CSAC Challenge Awards, visit:

https://www.counties.org/post/2021-challenge-award-recipients