Mission Statement

The Community Engagement Cluster (CEC) works to build stronger, more informed, and inclusive communities. The Cluster is responsible for strengthening Montgomery County's commitment to civic engagement and community service by engaging residents, organizations, businesses, and other community groups. The Cluster maximizes communities' assets - time, talents, and other resources - working collaboratively to address and resolve community issues.

The cluster is a combination of the five Regional Services Centers, the Commission for Women, and the Office of Community Partnerships, including the Gilchrist Center and the Volunteer Center, that has been operating as one unit since July 1, 2011. As a cluster, these offices/functions have combined facilities, resources, and support staff while retaining staff expertise and experience, as well as most of the objectives of the separate entities involved.

Budget Overview

The total recommended FY21 Operating Budget for the Community Engagement Cluster is $4,337,282, a decrease of $469,986 or 9.78 percent from the FY20 Approved Budget of $4,807,268. Personnel Costs comprise 88.14 percent of the budget for 24 full-time position(s) and 12 part-time position(s), and a total of 30.00 FTEs. Total FTEs may include seasonal or temporary positions and may also reflect workforce charged to or from other departments or funds. Operating Expenses account for the remaining 11.86 percent of the FY21 budget.

County Priority Outcomes

While this program area supports all eight of the County Result Areas, the following are emphasized:

• Thriving Youth and Families
• A Greener County
• Effective, Sustainable Government

Program Performance Measures

Performance measures for this department are included below (where applicable), with multi-program measures displayed at the front of this section and program-specific measures shown with the relevant program. The FY20 estimates reflect funding based on the FY20 approved budget. The FY21 and FY22 figures are performance targets based on the FY21 recommended budget and funding for comparable service levels in FY22.

Initiatives

• Expanding community liaison capacity to enhance support to the Middle Eastern and LGBTQ communities.
• Enhance outreach activities to increase awareness of citizenship programs offered in the County.

Program Descriptions

  Administration

Administrative Management for the Community Engagement Cluster (CEC) handles all aspects of budget, procurement, financial, contracts/grants, personnel, and administrative matters of the CEC units (Regional Services Centers, Commission for Women, Office of Community Partnerships, including the Gilchrist Center and the Volunteer Center). In addition, the responsibilities of this unit include...

  Community Partnership

The Office of Community Partnerships (OCP) is a bridge among our diverse community residents and organizations and the County government. The staff provides outreach and liaison services to ethnic, multilingual, and multicultural communities; works closely with the County's nonprofit and faith community organizations; and coordinates a number of community-building events...

  Regional Services Centers

The County has five Regional Services Centers: Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Eastern Montgomery, Mid-County, Silver Spring, and Upcounty. The Regional Directors in each of the County's five regions work with their respective regional citizens advisory boards, residents, community groups, businesses, and other public agencies to proactively seek and gather information and assess...

  Commission for Women

The Commission for Women's mission is to identify gender-based inequities in laws, policies, practices and procedures, and to advocate remedies by advising the public and local, state, and federal agencies on issues of concern to women, including organizing events relating to these issues....

  Gilchrist Center

The Charles W. Gilchrist Center for Cultural Diversity is the County's Welcome Center for newcomers and helps to build the network of immigrant service providers in the County. The Center offers various immigrant integration services at various locations throughout the County that prepare residents to contribute to our economy...