The Formation of a Community Action Agency:

In late 1965, a group of citizens from Winona County came together to discuss poverty in their county. They had heard about federal legislation, called the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, that made possible the formation of Community Action Agencies across the United States and charged these agencies with fighting the "War on Poverty". The Winona County group formed the Winona Citizens Action Council in hopes of accessing funding to help those living in poverty in their county.

The federal government told the Council that only multi-county proposals would be funded for greater cost effectiveness. Therefore, the Winona Citizens Action Council approached Fillmore County and Houston County, and in June 1966, the South Eastern Minnesota Citizens Action Council became a private, nonprofit corporation. On July 1, 1975, Dodge County and Steele County officially joined the agency, and on June 25, 1985 Mower County became the sixth county of the agency's service area.

In 1977, the Board of Directors changed the agency's legal name to SEMCAC, Inc. because they felt the original name was too long. In 1995, the "Inc." was dropped and the agency's legal name became "Semcac".

Due to cuts in state funding in 2003, the Community Action Agency in Freeborn County - South Central Community Action Partnerships (SCCAP) - closed its doors on December 31, 2003. On December 2, 2003, the Freeborn County Commissioners approved the designation of Semcac as the Community Action Agency for the county beginning January 1, 2004.

Semcac was the last Community Action Agency to be funded in Minnesota and one of the last in the United States. Although the federal government stated that no more Community Action Agencies would be formed after June 30, 1966, a few new agencies have formed and been funded since that time. There are two kinds of Community Action Agencies: 1) Public Agency: A city or county with a population greater than 100,000 may have a Community Action Agency within its structure and apply for funding to operate programs; or 2) Private, Non-Profit Corporation: The governing body of a county must officially recognize the Community Action Agency for that county, and a Board of Directors, consisting of one-third local elected officials, one-third private citizens, and one-third consumers of the agency's programs, governs the Community Action Agency. There are currently 27 Community Action Agencies in the State of Minnesota and most are private, non-profit corporations.

The Mission and Purpose of Semcac:

The agency's first mission statement was "To develop and carry out programs to stimulate a better focusing of human and financial resources on the goal of eliminating poverty. This effort is carried out by working with and through key public and private institutions at the national, state, and local levels."

Semcac's mission statement is now: "Semcac assists people to achieve or maintain independence and self-reliance through their own and community resources."

Just as the agency's mission statement has developed over the years, some of Semcac's programming and projects have also changed. The agency remains dedicated to fighting poverty and helping people help themselves and each other.

The agency's initial priorities were to establish: 1) a program for preschool children (Head Start); 2) an employment program for young people; and 3) a senior citizens project (Senior Dining). The first funds received were a planning and development grant of $30,000 and a grant of $14,862 that created the agency's first program - the Winona Youth Employment Program. Other programs operated by Semcac and that have since spun off or discontinued because of funding include Family Services; Alcohol Counseling; Clothing Centers; Community Food and Nutrition; Comprehensive Employment Training Assistance; Emergency Food and Medical Services; Maternal Child Nutrition; Neighborhood Youth Corps; New Careers; New Way Community School; Operation Mainstream; Rural Older Adult Centers; Rural Health Team; Buying Club; Special Trips for Senior Citizens; Upward Bound; Women, Infants and Children; Community Development Corporation; and Senior Companions.

Semcac's current department areas include Head Start, Outreach & Emergency Services, Health Services, Senior Nutrition, Community Development, Transportation, and Senior Services. The departments manage programs such as Home-Based and Center Based Head Start, Family Homeless Prevention & Assistance, Rural Housing Assistance & Stability Program, Field Services, Food Shelves, a Family Planning Clinic, Senior Dining, Meals on Wheels, Affordable Housing Development, Housing Rehabilitation, Weatherization, Energy Assistance, Bus Service, Volunteer Driver Program, Retired Senior and Volunteer Program and the Caregiver Advocacy Program.

Office Locations:

The City of Rushford offered to house Semcac's Administrative Office free of charge in the city's Tew Memorial Building. As the agency grew, two additional sites in Rushford were used for Head Start and Senior Programs staff. In 1992, Semcac purchased a large building in Rushford, and staff of the agency's Administrative Office came together under one roof.

Semcac has a Contact Center in each of the agency's primary service area counties. The Contact Centers are in Dodge Center (Dodge County), Preston (Fillmore County), Albert Lea (Freeborn County), Caledonia (Houston County), Austin (Mower County), Owatonna (Steele County), and Winona (Winona County). At the Contact Centers, Semcac's Field Services staff provide a personal connection between low-income households and community resources and services. Field Services staff advocate for their clients, provide information and referrals, and assist with completing applications for services. Semcac also has sixteen Center-Based Head Start locations throughout six counties and 58 Senior Dining sites throughout eleven counties.