CSAC Announces 2025 Challenge Award Winners

Contact: Rachael Serrao, Senior Manager, Public Affairs and Communications
Phone: (916) 926-8769 | Email: rserrao@counties.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sacramento, CA – The California State Association of Counties (CSAC), the voice of California’s 58 counties, announced the 2025 Challenge Awards winners at the second-annual Challenge Awards Dinner on Wednesday, February 11.

The Challenge Awards recognize the forward-thinking solutions counties have developed to enhance services, improve efficiency, and make a meaningful difference in communities across California. An impartial panel reviews each submission independently, judging every program on its own merits and creativity—not in competition with others.

This year, CSAC honored 15 programs from Glenn, Kern, Los Angeles, Monterey, Nevada Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, and Yuba counties for their positive impact on communities.

“These award-winning programs demonstrate the power of local innovation to solve complex challenges and strengthen communities across California,” said Graham Knaus, CSAC CEO.

Of the 15 programs recognized, three earned the Innovation Award – the highest distinction within the Challenge Awards. Selected as the top-scoring submissions, these programs stood out for their exceptional creativity, effectiveness, and measurable impact.

Innovation Award Winners

• Rural – Glenn County’s “Senior Resource Expo”
• Suburban – Santa Cruz County’s “Emergency Road Damage Assessment Tool”
• Urban – Riverside County’s “County Budget Civic Engagement Campaign”

Challenge Awards Winners

• Kern County’s “Mobile Evaluation Team”
• Los Angeles County’s “Delivering Justice: Doula-Led Carceral Perinatal Program”
• Los Angeles County’s “Independent Pre-Trial Services”
• Los Angeles County’s “The SECTOR Program”
• Monterey County’s “Hygiene Hubs”
• Nevada County’s Expanding Rural Access Through Innovation and Community Care”
• Sacramento County’s “Juvenile Pre-Trial Program”
• San Bernardino County’s “Rapid Hire/One Day Hiring Event Program”
• San Diego County’s “Using Automation for Quick Customer Address Correction”
• Santa Clara County’s “Intern and Earn”
• Santa Clara County’s “Peer Health Education”
• Yuba County’s “Youth Emergency Preparedness Program in Rural California”

Brief descriptions of the award-winning programs are below. CSAC will begin accepting nominations for the 2026 Challenge Awards later this summer.

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Innovation Award Winners:

Glenn County
Senior Resource Expo
Glenn County’s Senior Resource Expo reimagines how older adults in a rural community access essential services. Faced with food insecurity, limited transportation, digital barriers, and social isolation, many seniors were falling through the cracks. The Senior Resource Expo creates a one-stop in-person event offering transportation, meals, health screenings, benefits enrollment, emergency preparedness, and social connection— removing barriers and ensuring seniors can access critical support in a single day and single location.

Santa Cruz County
Emergency Road Damage Assessment Tool
Santa Cruz County’s Emergency Road Damage Assessment (ERDA) Tool transforms how the County prioritizes road repairs after disasters. Facing repeated wildfires and severe storms, officials lacked a transparent way to address over 400 damaged sites amid funding and cash-flow constraints. ERDA uses GIS, equity data, and engineering assessments to objectively score and prioritize repairs, which accelerates recovery, improves transparency, and ensures vulnerable communities are not left behind.

Riverside County
County Budget Civic Engagement Campaign
Riverside County’s County Budget Civic Engagement Campaign transforms how residents participate in the county budget process. The County addressed barriers of complexity and access by launching multilingual surveys, community workshops, and an easy-to-follow “Budget 101” guide. The campaign replaced silence with meaningful input by engaging tens of thousands of residents and equipping leaders with clear, community input to guide budget decisions.

Challenge Award Winners:

Kern County
Mobile Evaluation Team
Kern County’s Mobile Evaluation Team Communications Center Program transforms how behavioral health–related 911 calls are handled. Traditionally routed through law enforcement, many crisis calls did not require a police response and diverted resources from public safety. By embedding trained behavioral health specialists directly into 911 call centers, the program ensures callers receive immediate de-escalation, crisis support, and connection to care, which reduces unnecessary law enforcement dispatches while delivering the right response at the right time.

Monterey County
Hygiene Hubs
Monterey County’s Hygiene Hubs addressed an urgent public health crisis following severe storms that left Pajaro residents without running water or sewage. To support safe and equitable recovery, the County established 24/7 hygiene hubs offering showers, toilets, laundry, food, water, and multilingual guidance. By removing sanitation barriers and prioritizing equity, the program enabled residents to return home safely, prevented widespread health risks, and strengthened trust during disaster recovery.

Los Angeles County
The SECTOR Program
Los Angeles County’s SECTOR Program addresses high unemployment and recidivism among justice-involved individuals by creating clear pathways to family-sustaining careers. Participants receive paid training, case management, peer mentorship, and cognitive behavioral support in high-growth industries. By removing barriers to employment and partnering with trusted community organizations and employers, SECTOR connects individuals returning from incarceration to stable jobs, which ultimately strengthens economic mobility while improving public safety outcomes.

Los Angeles County
Independent Pre-Trial Services
Los Angeles County’s Independent Pre-trial Services Agency (IPSA) improves outcomes for justice-involved individuals by providing early, person-centered support at critical points in the legal process. Facing barriers such as housing instability, transportation challenges, and confusion navigating the court system, many individuals risked missed court dates and re-arrest. IPSA offers real-time navigation, transportation, court reminders, and service connections, which helps people stay compliant, stable, and on a path toward long-term success.

Los Angeles County
Delivering Justice: Doula-Led Carceral Perinatal Program
Los Angeles County’s Delivering Justice program addresses poor maternal and infant outcomes among pregnant people impacted by incarceration. Recognizing the isolation and trauma faced during pregnancy in carceral settings, the County launched a doula-led, culturally responsive care model. Through trauma-informed prenatal, birth, postpartum, and re-entry support, the program restores dignity, improves health outcomes, and reimagines perinatal care through a care-first, equity-centered approach.

Nevada County
Expanding Rural Access Through Innovation and Community Care
Nevada County’s Expanding Rural Access Through Innovation and Community Care program tackles healthcare gaps in remote, unincorporated communities where transportation and provider shortages limit access to basic services. To meet residents where they are, the County launched a mobile health van, school-based dental care, and 24/7 health-focused vending machines. This integrated approach delivers preventive and urgent care with dignity and improves outcomes for children, families, and vulnerable rural populations.

Sacramento County
Juvenile Pre-Trial Program
Sacramento County’s Juvenile Pre-Trial Program addresses high youth incarceration and recidivism by shifting the focus from punishment to early, needs-based support. Upon system entry, social workers assess each child’s trauma, mental health, education, and family needs to quickly connect them to services. By initiating voluntary, trauma-informed care before adjudication, the program supports earlier release, reduces repeat involvement, and improves outcomes for youth and families.

San Bernardino County
Rapid Hire/One Day Hiring Event Program
San Bernardino County’s Rapid Hire / One Day Hiring Event Program addressed chronic staffing shortages that delayed public services. Faced with vacancy rates exceeding 20 percent, the County streamlined hiring by combining interviews, conditional job offers, fingerprinting, and onboarding into a single-day event. This accelerated, candidate-centered approach reduced vacancies, strengthened critical departments, and ensured the County could deliver timely, high-quality services to the community.

San Diego County
Using Automation for Quick Customer Address Correction
San Diego County’s automated address correction program modernized how returned mail is handled for benefit recipients. Previously, manual processing delayed address updates for weeks, risking interruptions to critical services like CalFresh and Medi-Cal. By automating return mail notifications through real-time data and system integration, the County reduced delays, eased staff workload, and ensured vulnerable residents receive timely, uninterrupted access to essential benefits.

Santa Clara County
Intern and Earn
Santa Clara County’s Intern & Earn Program helps break cycles of generational poverty by providing paid, supportive work experiences for youth in CalWORKs and foster care. Many participants are entering the workforce for the first time and face barriers to employment. Through guided job placement, mentorship, and county-supported worksites, Intern & Earn builds skills, confidence, and real-world experience, ultimately connecting vulnerable youth to brighter long-term economic outcomes.

Santa Clara County
Peer Health Education
Santa Clara County’s Peer Health Education Program empowers incarcerated youth to lead health education for their peers in a juvenile detention setting. Recognizing that traditional, authority-led instruction often falls short, the County developed a peer-to-peer model that builds trust and engagement. Through interactive, youth-designed lessons on mental health, substance use, and reproductive health, the program increases health knowledge, leadership skills, and positive outcomes for justice-involved youth.

Yuba County
Youth Emergency Preparedness Program in Rural California
Yuba County’s “We’re Not Scared, We’re Prepared” program strengthens disaster readiness by empowering first-grade students with age-appropriate emergency preparedness education. In a community vulnerable to wildfires, floods, and severe weather, the County recognized the need to reach families. Using interactive, trauma-informed lessons and social-emotional learning, the program builds confidence, reduces fear, and helps youth share preparedness skills at home, which has created more resilient families and communities.

Congratulations to each of the winning programs. For more information, please visit the CSAC website.