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What We've Done

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Featured Project:
New Jersey Department
of Community Affairs,
Division of Disaster Recovery and Mitigation

In 2022, the federal government released $350 billion to state, local, territorial, and Tribal governments in the form of Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery (SLFR) grants to support the communities hit hardest by the pandemic.

 

As part of the State of New Jersey's plan to develop a model integrity oversight program, the Vander Weele Group and partner Deluca Advisory Services were charged with developing a comprehensive Subrecipient Monitoring Plan. The plan's objectives included ensuring compliance with applicable law, implementing federal and state regulations regarding SLFR funding, and assisting subrecipients in identifying metrics to guide and evaluate program success.

Drawing on twenty years of experience in compliance, programmatic monitoring, and fraud prevention, the Vander Weele Group has provided the state with ongoing risk assessments and the means to evaluate and improve project performance, internal controls, cash management, acquisition and property management, and records management. Additionally, we've provided training to detect and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse, and in conducting subrecipient monitoring.

Download our Capabilities Statement

Recent Projects

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City of Phoenix, AZ

Assessed home visits for the Head Start Birth to Five Program's home-based option in the City of Phoenix using the Home Visit Rating Scales (HOVRS3) tool. Contracted to observe and assess 168 home visits each year for a five-year term and conduct reflective feedback sessions with each home visitor to improve services for Phoenix families.  

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New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development

Drove creation of risk assessments and a fraud prevention and detection policy to aid in monitoring of $5.6 billion dollars of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program funds, $9 billion in Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program funds, and $3.8 billion in Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program funds. 

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New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of Disaster Recovery and Mitigation

Developed the subrecipient monitoring plan the Division of Disaster Recovery and Mitigation (DRM) will use to ensure subrecipients comply with ARPA, implement regulations, and assist subrecipients in identifying metrics for success. Includes initial and ongoing risk assessments, and means to evaluate project performance, internal controls, cash management, acquisition management, property management, and records management capabilities. Provided training in the detection and prevention of fraud, waste, and abuse, and in subrecipient monitoring.

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New Jersey Division of Pensions and Benefits

Developed prioritized recommendations, risk assessment, and sampling and monitoring procedures following a Memorandum of Understanding between the NJ Department of Treasury and the NJ Division of Pensions and Benefits (NJPB) to aid in monitoring of $146.2 million in increased claims to NJPB resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

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New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

Monitored more than $20 million in funds allocated to the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) to be awarded to grantees--primarily fishermen or fishery-related businesses--with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC). Conducted interviews, policy and procedure collection and review, developed a risk assessment based on recommendations to mitigate fraud, waste, and abuse. Reviewed benefits samples for duplication on behalf of the Office of the Comptroller to minimize overlap with ongoing fraud investigations.

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New Jersey Redevelopment Authority

Supported creation of a risk assessment and conducted monitoring of state funds following a Memorandum of Understanding between the NJ Department of Treasury and the NJ Redevelopment Authority (NJRA) allocating $6.25 million to eligible businesses and property owners toward monthly lease obligations under the Small Business Lease-Emergency Assistance Grant Program.

Children's Toys

Featured Project:
Early Intervention

Early Intervention programs provide coordinated services to children with disabilities younger than age 3 and high-risk infants and toddlers. The Vander Weele Group’s success in delivering compliance monitoring services for the State of Illinois, the sixth largest Early Intervention system in the United States, affords us considerable expertise on program logistics, staffing, training, and reporting to share with our clients.

 

We create agile and responsive compliance monitoring protocols and tools aligned with the Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, state laws, and agency rules.  We manage large-scale, complex compliance monitoring programs and provide continuous technical support infused with our deep knowledge of best practice.

We also harness data collected through compliance monitoring reviews and special investigations to identify systemic challenges and work closely with key partners and stakeholders to devise and enact solutions.

Public Sector Projects

"Each year, the Vander Weele Group has effectively met or exceeded its monitoring goals on time and within budget. The team has become a true partner, delivering more than monitoring services. They have made significant contributions to enhanced accountability and improved child outcomes in Early Intervention.

I heartily recommend the Vander Weele Group as a competent, caring, and professional organization."

Private Sector Projects

"We were hired by an art gallery to find a customer who stole more than $100,000 of artwork. With only a name and no permanent address, the Vander Weele Group was able to locate the thief's family in an off-grid country home fueled only by a wood burning stove."

Featured Project:
Bureau of Indian Education

In a five-year program, Vander Weele Group provided compliance reviews, evaluations and technical assistance to nearly all of the 183 schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE). The firm made on-site visits to more than 140 locations in 23 states, reviewed more than 230,000 school safety and misconduct reports, and developed custom database tools for monitoring and reporting.

Each year, the Vander Weele Group provided a final report with recommended systemic reforms that addressed challenges such as high leadership and teacher turnover, inadequate technological infrastructure, insufficient understanding of student achievement data to drive educational programs, insufficient parental involvement, excessive carryover funds, violations of internal controls, Going Concern problems (schools improperly budgeting and at risk of exhausting their funds), and more. The BIE and its schools used the information from the monitoring visits and ​these recommendations to drive new strategies, future training, and technical assistance. 

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