Innovative Models of Care for Youth in Foster Care

The purpose of this Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is to define the County's minimum requirements, solicit Statements of Qualification (SOQ), and gain adequate information by which the County may evaluate the services offered by responding agencies.

The County of Solano, Department of Health and Social Services, hereinafter referred to as the County or H&SS, is seeking SOQs and intends to establish a list of qualified agencies that can provide innovative models of care to meet placement needs of youth in foster care. The County reserves the right to retain a “pool” of agencies on contract. Each agency in the pool shall be determined through this RFQ process.

Throughout this RFQ, the term “selected consultant” refers to the agency or agencies selected by the County to perform services under this solicitation. The term “proposer” refers to the individual or entity that submits a SOQ in response to this RFQ. The terms “response(s)”, “submittal(s)”, “proposal(s)” or “SOQ(s)” refer to the documents responding agencies submit in response to this solicitation for consideration by the County.

The County provides numerous services to the residents of Solano County. It has many divisions including Administration, Behavioral Health, Child Welfare Services (CWS), Employment and Eligibility Services, Public Health Services, and Medical Services.

In Child Welfare Services, the mission is to protect children from abuse and neglect by strengthening families or finding safe, permanent homes so that they can grow into healthy, productive adults. Child Welfare Services includes Hotline, Emergency Response 24/7 Services, Intensive Family Maintenance and Family Reunification Services, Permanent Placement Services, Supportive Transition Services, and Adoption Services.

Child Welfare Services is a state-supervised, County-administered program. The program’s purpose is to prevent, identify, and respond to allegations of child abuse and neglect. Families in the child welfare system receive services so that children can remain safely in their homes, and children who are temporarily removed from their homes can reunify with their families. For cases in which children are unable to reunify with their families, efforts are made to find a permanent home through adoption or guardianship.

The County is interested in building our Continuum of Care to ensure that all youth have access to placements that meet their specific physical, social, behavioral, and emotional needs. As of July 1, 2025, there were approximately 9 youth placed in Short Term Residential Therapeutic Programs (STRTPs). While a majority of these youth are successful in these programs, there are youth whose needs are not adequately addressed under the current STRTP model. As such, said youth struggle with placement stability and ultimately the provision of supportive services to assist them in reaching permanency. The County is seeking an Innovative Model of Care (IMC) to successfully address the needs of these youth while in a stable, trauma-informed placement.

Per State of California Department of Social Services Executive Summary – All County Letter (ACL) NO. 22-21 an IMC is an innovative county-designed AFDC-FC program or model of care and services, developed to address the complex needs of a unique population of children or Non-Minor Dependents (NMDs) or a specific child or NMD. County Welfare or Probation departments have flexibility to develop a program and implement an IMC that utilizes county homes, that partners with a Foster Family Agency (FFA) or Short-Term Residential Therapeutic Program (STRTP). An IMC may also be developed and implemented to serve specific children or NMDs placed with relatives, Non-Relative Extended Family Members (NREFMs), foster family homes, resource families (RFs), including FFAs with intensive service foster care (ISFC), RFs, or STRTPs. Examples of IMCs detailed in t his ACL i nclude ISFC Plus IMC models and STRTP of One IMC. However, counties and partnering agencies are able to utilize creativity to create an innovative model that best serves the youth in that county.

Please refer to the ACL at https://www.cdss.ca.gov/Portals/9/Additional-Resources/Letters-and-Notices/ACLs/2022/22-21.pdf?ver=2022-03-10-144744-350 for further information.