This Week from OCHE & Partners

From OCHE & BSAS

⚠️  The Procurement Community Academy 102: Supplier Diversity Officesession previously scheduled for June 8 has been postponed and will now take place on July 1 from 11:30am-1pm. Please register here if you’d like to join and learn from the SDO about small business and minority-owned business certification.

🗓️           Our next Community Office Hours will take place on June 22 from 10am-12pm, featuring Bright Solutions sharing about the substance use prevention world and how to support healthy communities. Join us and register here!

⚠️           We’ve been working hard this fiscal year (July 1 – June 30) to build a technology and data infrastructure that will more effectively get you information and opportunities. Be on the lookout for a new Community Partner Contact + Feedback Form coming summer 2026. We’ll use this to confirm and collect contact information, and on an ongoing basis as a way for our partners to share priorities with BSAS. Once it’s ready we’ll share that out, and will give you time to complete it to make sure we have the most current info you want us to securely store.

🗓️           BSAS’ Women + Family Services team invites you an upcoming in-person training Creating Inclusive Recovery Spaces: Supporting Neurodiverse Individuals in Treatment on June 9 in Worcester. Aimed at substance use service providers and free for staff at BSAS-contracted programs, this experiential training will focus on practical, applicable strategies for creating more inclusive systems, environments, and therapeutic interactions. Special emphasis will be placed on implementing neurodivergent-affirming approaches that improve accessibility and responsiveness for all those we serve, regardless of known diagnoses. Learn more and register here.

ℹ️           Last week Governor Healey announced new statewide guidance for schools, child care providers, higher education campuses, healthcare facilities, and places of worship regarding interactions with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The guidance is intended to help organizations across Massachusetts protect access to essential services, understand their rights and responsibilities, and prepare staff to respond appropriately if federal immigration officers arrive on site.

From our partners

🗣️           DPH’s Community Health Equity Initiative (CHEI) invites you to complete the CHTI 2026-2027 Training Topics Survey to help the team understand which training topics participants found most valuable this year and what could be improved, as well as what data topics community partners would like to see offered in the future. This survey is open to everyone – provide your input here.

🗓️          The CHEI team also invites you to two upcoming webinars focusing on collecting and using qualitative data (words and stories). Combining Survey Data with Lived Experiences to Tell a Fuller Story will take place on June 18 from 11am-12pm and you can register here. Planning for Qualitative Data Collection and Action takes place June 24 from 2-3pm and you can register here. Join one or both!

🗓️          Support After Death by Overdose (SADOD) welcomes you to Grief Theories and Grief Misconceptions on June 23 from 6-8pm. This workshop will provide a brief overview of helpful grief theories and dispel common misconceptions, with the goal of creating a safe space for individuals to ask questions and learn more about this process. Learn more and register here, using code MASS so it’s free for Massachusetts residents.

💰           Funding alert! The federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) recently forecasted two grants focused on rural communities increasing access to opioid response services, with nonprofits and other community partners eligible to apply for this funding. Learn more here, with expected applications due early this summer.

🗣️           The Recovery Courts:  Where Justice, Treatment, and Recovery Meet 2026 Conference has opened a Call for Proposals. The conference brings together legal system professionals, treatment/recovery specialists, and community partners to identify principles and practical solutions that will strengthen the region’s response to substance use disorder and facilitate the expansion of recovery and specialty courts. Learn more and submit your proposal here by June 30.