Campbell, Calif., July 21, 2010 – EMQ FamiliesFirst has earned a prestigious accreditation from the Council on Accreditation (COA).  COA defines comprehensive standards for mental health/foster care agencies that provide services, and world-class standards for business operations and personnel management. 

“The achievement of this important milestone demonstrates our commitment to providing the highest quality services for our kids,” said Darrell Evora, president and CEO of  EMQ FamiliesFirst. “We are a stronger agency for having undertaken this significant initiative.”  EMQ FamiliesFirst is the largest children’s services agency in California.

The accreditation not only recognizes the agency’s current standards of practice, but provides a roadmap of ongoing improvements to make over the next four years.

About COA
Founded in 1977, COA is an independent not-for-profit international accreditor of the full continuum of community-based behavioral health care and human service organizations. Today, over 1800 organizations - public and private - are either COA accredited or are in the process of seeking accreditation. These organizations serve over seven million of society’s most vulnerable individuals each year. 

About EMQ FamiliesFirst
EMQ FamiliesFirst does whatever it takes to help children and families in crisis. The agency is recognized for innovative mental health treatment, foster care and social services that help families recover from trauma, abuse and addiction, and rebuild their lives. EMQ FamiliesFirst fights for sustainable change and advocates for improvements in the local, state and federal systems that serve children in need. For more information, please visit http://www.emqff.org

Editorial Contact:
Kristine Austin, EMQ FamiliesFirst
(408) 364-4029 kaustin@emqff.org

or
Sandy Smith
(310) 560-8372 sandysmithpr@yahoo.com