Software Eases the Pain of Client Tracking, HUD Reports
"Built from the Ground Up," Program is Product of National Rehabilitation Model

   SAN DIEGO — Software developed by a national rehabilitation program for the homeless has revolutionized the way that organization gathers, processes and accesses client information, in addition to a number of other functions.

   Client Services Tracking And Reporting (C-STAR), the brainchild of national non-profit Father Joe’s Villages, is a Windows‰-based application designed specifically for social services that was built from the specifications of program directors, case managers and front-line staff of the organization. Labeled as a "computerized Continuum of Care," the program is user-friendly, easily customized and offers features such as extensive reporting functions, secure client notes with stand-alone and network capabilities and the ability to manage comprehensive data on an unlimited number of individual files.

   Additionally the software offers a reprieve from the daunting task of completing the numerous reports required by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Those reports, which once took weeks to complete, are now finished within hours.

   As the originators of the Continuum of Care, a "one-stop-shopping" approach to homeless rehabilitation combining food, shelter, medical and dental care, case management, children’s services, counseling, education and job resources all under one roof, Father Joe’s Villages has been recognized internationally as a leader for human services agencies.

   When the C-STAR project was approved it was viewed as a means to streamline the organization, a self-serving endeavor; however, as the project advanced, it became apparent that the software had potential application in many different client services arenas.

   The Villages called upon two internationally recognized defense systems contractors, Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) and GDE Systems, Inc., to spearhead the development of the software. The companies offered their services for free and embarked upon a three-year odyssey that, when completed, surprised everyone involved in the project.

   "When I saw the finished product, I did a double-take," said Harvey Mandel, Executive Vice President of the Villages. "It looks nicer and runs better than programs we use in other areas that cost thousands of dollars and accomplish less."

   Father Joe Carroll, President of Father Joe’s Villages, also sees the project as an opportunity to practice what he and his staff preach.

   "All of the programs and services we provide are aimed at helping our clients regain their self-sufficiency," he said. "This project allows Village management to learn a program, apply it to our work and show our sponsors that we too are striving to attain a certain level of self-sufficiency by developing tools that allow us to help ourselves."

   Villages’ administrators realized that the program could assist organizations industry-wide and suggested to CSC and GDE that the two businesses explore the possibility of nationally marketing C-STAR.

   After careful consideration, the collaborating companies offered yet another "in-kind" donation: They signed over the rights to the application to the Villages, allowing the organization to market the program and apply revenues from those sales to support its programs.

   C-STAR is now utilized by a growing of number of human services organizations across the nation and Father Joe’s Villages’ Marketing Manager Anthony Griffin fields product inquiries daily.

   "Non-profit organizations are becoming aware that, in order to keep operating, they must streamline as many programs and services as possible," said Griffin. "C-STAR allows them to do that by offering a system that has positive implications on every organizational level. From the front-line staff to grant writers, there are applications that can be utilized efficiently and effectively."

   C-STAR programming specialists are currently working on an updated version of the software, which will offer a more robust database and improve the overall performance of its functions, Griffin said.

   For more information on C-STAR, call (619) 687-1077 or for more information on Father Joe’s Villages, call (619) 525-1608.

# # #