Section 313.2  Definitions

"Advocacy Services" means para-professional assistance to youth and families in coping with or resolving personal, family, or social institutional problems.

"Area Project" means a body whose purpose is to develop, manage, provide and coordinate a community services program.

"Community Committee" means an organized group of indigenous community leaders and concerned citizens whose purpose is to implement and operate a community services program in a designated catchment area.

"Community Development/Redevelopment" means activities that strengthen the social, cultural and environmental conditions in the community and provide support to residents of a designated geographical area.

"Community Needs Assessment" is a process undertaken by an Area Project on the local level to yield insight into community conditions that affect the quality of life of its residents and place its youth at risk.

"Community Service Area (CSA)" means the catchment area in which the Community Committee operates a community services program.

"Community Services Plan" is a plan, developed by an Area Project, to address identified needs through community organizing activities, advocacy on behalf of community residents and, when necessary, direct services.

"Community Services Program" means a program aimed at changing social, cultural and environmental conditions which prevent youth and families from maximizing their potential (i.e., weaken the community) and place youth in a condition which increases their tendency to become involved in the juvenile justice or child welfare systems (i.e., place the community's youth at risk).

"Department" means the Illinois Department of Human Services.

"Direct Financial Interest" means any type of monetary gain from a Department-funded program such as that acquired by salaried staff of Department-funded programs and their immediate relatives or Department staff.

"Division of Youth and Community Services (DYCS)" means the division of the Department mandated to plan, develop and coordinate a statewide system of more comprehensive and integrated community-based youth services systems in Illinois.

"Indigenous Leaders" are leaders who live in the area served by the Community Committee.

"Monitoring" means the process by which the Department determines whether an expected or anticipated event does occur, through tracking, compliance and accountability checks and documentation of whether programs conform with previously defined program goals and standards.

"Network Activities" means the coordination of services and sharing of information among key agencies and individuals in a community.

"Regional Youth Planning Committee (RYPC)" means a committee within each region whose members are appointed by the Secretary of the Department of Human Services and designated to advise the Department in regard to regional youth service needs and problems, to prepare an annual regional youth services plan, and to review and comment upon regional youth service grant applications.

"Regional Youth Service Coordinators" are employees of the Department's Division of Youth and Community Services assigned to coordinate, develop and provide technical assistance to the youth services funded by the Department in each region.

"Service Brokerage Agreement" means a written, non-financial agreement between two agencies in which they agree to perform agreed upon tasks in order to achieve a mutually beneficial goal.

"Youth" in the context of this Part means a person under 21 years of age who is eligible as defined in Section 313.7 of this Part for the services delivered in this Part.