Updating and Relating

Through the partnership of Microsoft and TechSoup the Atlantic Cape Family Support Organization has purchased Office Professional Plus 2007, Office 2003 Suites, and Small Business Server 2003 R2 which created a completely new innovative infrastructure that has radically changed how we communicate and share information between our two locations and securely protect client confidentiality.

Since its inception in 2001, the ACFSO staff has had to fax, email, snail mail and even drive paperwork and confidential information between our two offices. Now with access to VPN and server capabilities, sharing is convenient and manageable. Because our non-profit, family oriented company is small (8 full time staffers) it has always been financially impossible to securely upgrade and centralize that ever-growing mass of daily paperwork. The confidentiality of families and clientele has always been a great concern, however, with the new server, software and VPN capabilities we can communicate, analyze, share and organize our time more efficiently without fear of breaking privacy. Time is no longer the enemy. The staff can now be in the field meeting face to face with the parents and children we serve, creating greater impact and efficiency in their daily use of time. The number of hours spent with clientele has been increased and the value of that time has been augmented.

Within the office the server has enabled us to set up a central system (a public Q drive) that allows access to necessary forms and information, and at the same time each staffer has a password protected, personal “P” drive which contains confidential family files. VPN capabilities have allowed our second location access to the server located in our main office at any time from any computer. This has given staff the freedom to use their laptops and/or home computers to finish paperwork and necessary reports. Our Financial Administrator can even create payroll and financial reports from the comfort of their home.

The new and upgraded technical infrastructure has had a substantial impact on the ACFSO’s growth and development as an organization. It has also put our family partners back into the field visiting with the families we serve. Microsoft technology has provided us with the tools needed to manage our growth, continue to increase our impact, and relieve the stress and adverse affects that unmet deadlines have created in the past. Now the ACFSO looks forward to the future, increasing the number of families we support, educate and advocate within the Children’s behavioral, emotional and mental health system.

Without this help we would still be living within the confines and capabilities of paper, as well as the everyday stresses of demanding deadlines. Thank you for your contribution to the families in New Jersey.