PLATINUM2021

Crisis Support Services of Alameda County

Connecting People in Need with People Who Care

aka CSS   |   Oakland, CA   |  www.crisissupport.org

Mission

CSS began 40 years ago as a 24-hour suicide prevention and crisis line. We now provide a variety of mental health services to a wide range of persons in varying degrees of crisis. We carry out our mission through several programs dedicated to saving lives and helping people struggling with personal issues. Over the course of a year we respond to more than 50,000 calls from Alameda County residents who need help on our crisis lines. Our services are free of charge to everyone, and a toll-free number is available throughout the county. A dedicated group of community volunteers staff the crisis lines every day and night of the year.

Ruling year info

1971

Principal Officer

Ms. Narges Dillon

Main address

PO Box 3120

Oakland, CA 94609 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

94-1635658

NTEE code info

Hot Line, Crisis Intervention (F40)

Counseling Support Groups (F60)

Other Mental Health, Crisis Intervention N.E.C. (F99)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

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Communication

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

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Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

24 hour crisis line

If you or someone you know is struggling with difficult life circumstances or uncomfortable thoughts and emotions we are here to help. You do not need to be experiencing suicidal thoughts or feelings to call. Trained crisis intervention counselors are available to receive crisis calls and give supportive counseling 24 hours a day, every day. Translation is available in more than 140 languages. We also offer teletype (TDD) services for deaf and hearing-impaired individuals.

Crisis Line Program Philosophy
CSS is enriched by the various values and perspectives each crisis line counselor brings to the agency. The common foundation of this diversity is an absolute respect for the individual and the belief that callers can be served best by helping them to discover and draw upon their own strengths and resources. Our Crisis Line is answered by dedicated staff, as well as over 150 trained community volunteers, many of whom have personal experience with mental health challenges.

Population(s) Served
Age groups
Ethnic and racial groups

Where we work

Affiliations & memberships

Accredited by the American Association of Suicidology 2020

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 2021

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of crisis hotline calls answered

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Type of Metric

Other - describing something else

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Context Notes

Number of local calls that the Crisis Line program responded to in 19-20 Fiscal Year.

Number of clients participating in educational programs

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Type of Metric

Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

total number of people who received an educational presentation regarding mental health and suicide prevention.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

CSS is actively working on expanding our bilingual services with the goal of better serving communities for whom English is not their first Language. In the last year, CSS has added limited text line hours in Spanish and is currently recruiting for a bilingual community educator.
CSS is constantly evaluating services to ensure they are aligned with the needs of the community. For example, CSS is offering grief support groups at school partner sites in response to surge in community violence.
There are two expansion goals for the agency, one is the increase number of hours the text line is available and the other is to increase the reach of the clinical program throughout the county's East and South regions.

Partnering with existing organizations that are serving our target demographics in other ways is one way to build rapport with a new community and increase their access to CSS services. This approach works for both geographic expansion, as well as expansion into other communities that have not been historically appropriately served by the mental health system.
Regarding expansion of text line services, the agency is working to raise funds needed to increase personnel to make this goal possible.

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We demonstrated a willingness to learn more by reviewing resources about feedback practice.
done We shared information about our current feedback practices.

  • How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?

    To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection

Financials

Crisis Support Services of Alameda County
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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Connect with nonprofit leaders

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lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

Subscribe

Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

Crisis Support Services of Alameda County

Board of directors
as of 11/23/2021
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Sadegh Nobari

Susan Sniderman, MD

Trustees:

William B. Elliott, PhD, MPS

Judith Blackfield Cohen, PhD

Sadegh Nobari, MFT

Matthew Friedman

Kit Livingston

Barbara Wolfinger

Ellen T. Keeshan

Nancy Ranney

Barbara Ziontz, CFP

Rev. Herbert Anderson

Patricia F. Shanks

Merv Cherrin, JD, MFT

Carter Mehl, PhD

Shirley Juster

Claire Isaacs Wahrhaftig

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 10/14/2021
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
Iranian
Gender identity
Female, Not transgender (cisgender)
Sexual orientation
Decline to state
Disability status
Decline to state

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

 

Sexual orientation

No data

Disability

No data

Equity strategies

Last updated: 10/14/2021

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
  • We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
Policies and processes
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.