Victorville Community Resource Center Named California HUD EnVision Center

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif., Jan. 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In partnership with the Housing Authority of San Bernardino County (HACSB), Inland Empire Health Plan's (IEHP) Victorville Community Resource Center (CRC) has been designated as the first EnVision Center in San Bernardino County, the first center in HUD Region IX (AZ, CA, HI, NV) to partner with a health plan, and seventh in the state of California.

This designation, declared by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), highlights the center's ability and commitment to empower households with resources and support needed to become self-sufficient. Resources pertain to economic empowerment, educational advancement, health and wellness, and character leadership. Enhancing this commitment, HACSB will now be accessible to members and community residents at the health plan's Victorville CRC.

"Having HACSB on-site is a win for the community," said Delia Orosco, IEHP Victorville CRC manager. "Their presence will provide access to various affordable housing programs and together, we can work to elevate and empower our neighbors to live the very best lives they can."

Established in 2019, IEHP's Victorville CRC is one of three centers in the Inland Empire and includes locations in Riverside and San Bernardino. As a trio, the CRCs refocused their efforts in 2020 to support community residents by hosting various grocery distributions, flu vaccine clinics and more. 

Traditionally, the centers offer youth mentorship, immigration services, legal services, health and wellness classes, children's programing, and healthcare coverage education in both English and Spanish and have established partnerships with Goodwill Southern California, Community Action Partnership of San Bernardino, TODEC Legal Services, and Young Visionaries Youth Leadership Academy.

"While success on one level may be measured by the number of people served by the Inland Empire Health Plan's Victorville Community Resource Center," said Christopher Patterson, HUD regional administrator, "the true measure of success will be determined by the number of persons who achieve greater self-sufficiency. The extent to which they independently gain the financial means to rent, or even buy, their own homes, is a success we can all celebrate."

To qualify for designation, HSCSB participated in an intensive review and application process that evaluated the Victorville CRC's operations plan, including funding sources and strategy, outreach plans and center goals.

"As a longtime partner of IEHP, we are thrilled to collaborate in this way and expand resources provided at the Victorville CRC," said Maria Razo, HACSB executive director. "This strategic partnership will allow us to share resources with those in need and open us up to additional collaborations with partners to enhance this commitment throughout our county and beyond. We are grateful to IEHP for their collaboration which will allow our families to conveniently access the comprehensive array of onsite services." 

IEHP's Victorville CRC will join a short list of seven existing California HUD EnVision Centers, including: NHS Center for Sustainable Communities in Compton, La Familia's Maple Neighborhood Center and Fruit Ridge Community Collaborative in Sacramento, Coalition for Responsible Community Development in Los Angeles, Metro Career Center in San Diego, and Hemet Envision Center in Hemet.

"This designation came from the partnership, dedication, acknowledgment of needs, and commitment to the health and wellness of our communities," said Jarrod McNaughton, IEHP chief executive officer. "We are so grateful to have partners like HACSB who truly embody our mission to heal and inspire the human spirit and are willing to collaborate to ensure that our most vulnerable populations have access and opportunities to empower themselves and lead healthier lives."

To learn more about HUD EnVision Centers, visit HUD.Gov/EnVisionCenters.

About IEHP
IEHP, Inland Empire Health Plan, is one of the top 10 largest Medicaid health plans and the largest not-for-profit Medicare-Medicaid plan in the country. With a network of more than 6,400 Providers and more than 2,000 employees, IEHP serves more than 1.3 million residents in Riverside and San Bernardino counties who are enrolled in Medicaid or Cal MediConnect Plan (Medicare-Medicaid Plan). Through a dynamic partnership with Providers and Community, award-winning service and innovative products, IEHP is fully committed to advocating for our Members and providing them with quality, accessible and wellness-based health care services. For more information, visit iehp.org.

About HACSB
The Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino is one of the nation's most progressive housing authorities in the Country. As the largest provider of affordable housing in the County, we proudly serve over 26,000 people, most of whom are seniors, veterans, disabled individuals, and children. We also work on connecting our families with additional resources needed to achieve their personal goals. For more information, please visit: www.hacsb.com.

About HUD
HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet
at www.hud.gov and https://espanol.hud.gov.

SOURCE Inland Empire Health Plan (IEHP)