Working toward Common Goals

Organizational standards were implemented in 2016 in an effort to help Community Services Block Grant-funded agencies to have organizational capacity along with consistent standards across Community Action Agencies throughout the country.

The CSBG Organizational Standards are a comprehensive set of standards developed with input from the entire CSBG Network through a three-year, multiphase process led by the Organizational Standards Center of Excellence.

Organized in three thematic groups, comprising nine categories, there are 58 standards for private, nonprofit entities and 50 for public entities.

The Organizational Standards ensure that all agencies have appropriate organizational capacity in critical financial and administrative areas, as well as in areas of unique importance to the mission of the Community Action Network, connecting us as one network impacting poverty.

Three National Goals

In addition to the Organizational Standards, Community Action Agencies are connected by outcomes and the three national goals of CSBG, which demonstrate the impact of the Community Action Agencies’ work on individual, local and community levels.

The three national goals of CSBG for individual and family programs and services are:

Goal 1:

Individuals and families with low incomes are stable and achieve economic security.

Goal 2:

Communities where people with low incomes live are healthy and offer economic opportunity.

Goal 3:

People with low incomes are engaged and active in building opportunities in communities.