Community and Family Advancement

Committee

Summer Committee Report

November 8, 2015

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Table of Contents LETTER FROM THE CHAIRMAN………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 2

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 3

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 4

SUPPORT STAFF……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4

CLEVELAND HEARING…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 6

CINCINATI HEARING…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 12

EAST LIVERPOOL HEARING…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 20

COLUMBUS HEARING…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 26

RECOMMENDATIONS…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 31

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Letter from the Chairman The Community and Family Advancement Task Force learned much about the barriers that individuals

face when living in poverty during the summer hearings of 2015. We traveled around the state and

listened to service providers, state and local agencies, non-profits, individuals in and out of poverty,

employers, faith-based organizations, educational institutions and others. Several highlights of our

hearings include the role that faith-based groups have in restoring an individual’s hope, the critical value

of collaboration among program providers, and employers’ willingness to hire responsible workers.

One witness explained that it was at a faith-based provider where she found her initial hope through

provision of food and clothing for her family. Having these basic needs met, she gained the confidence

to take the next step in the process. Having faith-based and other community organizations collaborate

to help meet basic human needs, such as food, clothing, and community, is often the springboard to the

next steps toward climbing out of poverty. Compassion and commitment, both on the part of the

impoverished and those striving to empower them, are the catalysts to sustainable success and lead to

powerful transformation.

Many service providers shared their organizations’ expertise and sincere interest in helping individuals

in their communities. These organizations offer programs that help our unemployed and

underemployed qualify for sustainable, good-paying jobs. I was encouraged that witnesses spoke of

successful collaborative efforts in their communities. The state also recognizes the value of

collaboration, and through comprehensive case management practices (implemented as part of the

state’s current operating budget) we hope to promote stronger, more efficient relationships among

providers. Another byproduct of case management practices will be greater accountability and

measurability.

It is equally important to note that we heard from many employers. Several of which should be

highlighted for their bold approach by intentionally reaching out to the impoverished communities and

individuals who are struggling to find employment based on their current situations. In Cincinnati, a

manufacturer seeks individuals with criminal records, offering them a “second chance,” while a

restaurateur in East Liverpool seeks out high school students, offering them a first chance of

employment while still in school. In both cases (and many others), our free enterprise system has not

only encouraged the existence of these Ohio businesses, but has to a greater extent, ensured the

success of many businesses that seek to offer a way out of poverty to many individuals.

My thanks go out to all the individuals and organizations that hosted our committee, testified at the

hearings, and helped us better understand the many barriers Ohioans face in seeking and obtaining a

sustainable job.

I also thank the House members and staffers who dedicated their time and effort to make these

meetings so successful.

Timothy Derickson

Chairman, Community and Family Advancement Committee

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Executive Summary In 1964, the welfare program was born. The constancy of such federal programming ever since has

provided ample opportunities for researchers to study the effectiveness of this decade’s long initiative,

in which the results are anything but inspiring. Fifty-one years later, the United States of America has

one of the lowest labor participation rates in its history. The cost of these federal programs rises

exponentially every year with even less opportunity to change one’s socioeconomic status. After $15

trillion in government spending, there are still significantly more people in poverty than in 1964.

The statistics create a valid pessimism that arouses fear and anger while we continue to try to inspire

hope in poverty. And we know only optimism can inspire such hope. It is out of that optimistic hope

that Speaker Cliff Rosenberger and Chairman Tim Derickson decided to take the Community and Family

Advancement Committee to four locations around the state to examine poverty, poverty reduction

strategies, the effects of poverty, and the work of direct and indirect service providers seeking to

eliminate poverty from their communities.

The committee held hearings in Cleveland, Cincinnati, East Liverpool and Columbus, calling on for-profit

and non-profit organizations, as well as community and governmental leaders, to identify their

methods, critical needs, proven strategies and barriers to success. The identified solution is one that

seeks transformation, relief, and opportunity. It means defending a culture of faith, family, community

and work; increasing charity and protecting the safety net for the truly needy; and fighting for education

reform and free enterprise as profound moral imperatives.

Much research and debate has gone into the conversation about alleviating poverty on a national scale,

and this is certainly a critical conversation. However, one often overlooked way of breaking the cycle of

poverty nationally is to break the poverty of opportunity locally. By drawing on the intellect and

experience of those serving daily in the heart of our most at-risk communities, the Community and

Family Advancement Committee seeks to identify the needs of the most vulnerable individuals in our

society.

Faith, family, community and work, four institutions increasingly absent in poor America, need to be

given additional opportunity to thrive in order to restore communities holistically. The central

motivating purpose of our philosophy is not fighting against things or institutions, but rather fighting for

people. Let us not recant on our promise to the poor, further diminishing hope in our poorest

neighborhoods. Rather, in the words of President Reagan in his “Morning In America” speech,

“Together, let us make this a new beginning. Let us make a commitment to care for the needy.”

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Committee Membership The Community and Family Advancement Summer Committee is a unique summer traveling committee

as it is made up of the existing members of the committee.

Rep. Timothy Derickson, Chairman

Rep. Timothy E. Ginter, Vice Chairman

Rep. Stephanie D. Howse, Ranking Member

Rep. Bill Hayes

Rep. Jeff McClain

Rep. Christina Hagan

Rep. Jonathan Dever

Rep. Margy Conditt

Rep. Niraj Antani

Rep. Ron Young

Rep. Bill Patmon

Rep. Kevin Boyce

Rep. Janine R. Boyd

Rep. Michele Lepore-Hagan

In addition to the committee members, Chairman Derickson invited any member in the surrounding

region of the committee hearing to attend as a member of the committee. Below are the members that

participated.

Rep. Ron Amstutz, Speaker Pro-Tempore

Rep. Marlene Anielski

Rep. Denise Driehaus

Support Staff The committee would like to thank the following staff for their contribution to the success of the

summer committee.

Christopher Albanese, Policy Aide, Office of Speaker Cliff Rosenberger

Brie Diehl, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Timothy Derickson

Sam Smith, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Bill Hayes

Carissa Reed, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Stephanie Howse

Katherine Wenner, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Timothy Ginter

Ali Simon, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Scott Ryan

Allison Lawlor, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Margy Conditt

Justin Hucke, Legislative Aide, Office of Rep. Jonathan Dever

Rob Cooper, Constituent Aide, Office of Rep. Timothy Derickson

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Community and Family Advancement

Committee

Summer Hearings

Cleveland, August 12th

Cincinnati, August 18th

East Liverpool, September 15th

Columbus, September 29th

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Tuesday, August 12th, 2015 – Cleveland The Cleveland Metropolitan Housing Authority took legislators and staff on a tour of the community to

highlight new housing solutions, including an apartment development specifically designed for

grandparents raising their grandchildren and a new mixed use development site with integrated-for-

purchase housing and Section 8 rental units. The tour stopped at Bridgeport Café for lunch, a social

enterprise developed out of an assessment of perceived community needs. The committee took place

at the Friendly Inn Settlement House.

Joe Calabrese – Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority

Organization Overview

The mission of GCRTA is to provide safe, reliable, clean and courteous public transportation.

There are 2,500 employees of GCRTA that commute 200,000 riders in a typical work day. Sixty percent

of the trips get people to work, 23 percent get people to school. Nearly 75 percent of riders are African

American, and 37 percent of riders are below the federal poverty level.

Barriers

Eighty-one percent of riders are transit dependent. GCRTA sells bus passes at reduced rates to

the workforce investment boards. The aging population is becoming ever more dependent on public

transportation. Ohio’s per capita investment is only a fraction of similar states’ investments.

Recommendations

A recent survey discovered college graduates want to live without a car, indicating demand will

only continue to rise. Also, public

transit is a lifeline for the poor.

Healthcare, work and education

are dependent on transportation.

Transit authorities will need

greater investments for planning

and strategy for future demands.

Ben Kearney – Ohio Guidestone

Organization Overview

Guidestone is a community solutions organization that blends behavioral health treatment, skill

building programs, and prevention opportunities for children and families. They serve more than 20,000

families across 13 Ohio counties in order to find comprehensive solutions with individualized

approaches. They have developed a charter school, StepStone Academy, as one way to serve families in

the designated community.

Barriers

Many clients struggle with a lack of education and life skills, and don’t know how to access

“WITH GROWTH IN OUR URBAN CENTERS,

DEMAND FOR SERVICES IS UP!”

Joe Calabresse – Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority

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personal or community resources. Many are involved in social networks that encompass an “us vs

them” mentality, and that do not have a shared altruistic vision. Many have a home life that is not

nurturing, and does not engage in an early-enhanced reading environment. Excessive exposure to

“artificial” joy experiences undermine personal relational capacities and impede the natural human

need for nurturing relationships.

Recommendations

Funding for programs should be predictable, as some programs cease to exist just as

momentum is building and positive outcomes are being reached. Funding for case worker support post-

program completion is necessary to generate long-term success. Investments in early childhood

development and learning are crucial to ending the cycle of poverty.

John Carmichael – Newbridge Center for Arts and Technology

Organization Overview

Newbridge provides training and assistance for career training programs, and focuses on

training unemployed and underemployed Clevelanders for sustainable jobs as pharmacy technicians and

phlebotomists. They partner with major healthcare employers such as Cleveland Clinic and University

Hospitals to provide a pipeline of services from training to careers, often meeting students where they

are to provide on-site training. Students develop professional skills such as communication, customer

service, problem solving, and conflict resolution. Eighty-one percent of graduates have been placed into

secure jobs, in which the average starting salary is over $27,000 a year plus benefits. The economic

impact on greater Cleveland is over $2 million dollars annually in wages alone. They will soon be

expanding to include patient care assistant training through the Cleveland Clinic, Metrohealth, and

University Hospitals, in which they expect to place 250 additional students into full-time jobs.

Barriers

A lack of reliable transportation, childcare needs along with, existing student debt, domestic

violence and crime.

Recommendations

NewBridge strongly supports the Healthier Buckeye program and believes it could be an

effective model for investing in local workforce development programs to ultimately help move people

out of poverty into economic self-sufficiency through employment. They also recommend investing into

public-private partnerships to have a greater impact on Ohio’s economy.

William Gary – Cuyahoga Community College

Organization Overview

Cuyahoga Community College’s mission is to provide quality, affordable and timely educational

and training programs that meet the workforce needs and improve the economic well-being of the

region. Since 1963, more than 900,000 students have been served. Tri-C’s tuition is the lowest in

Northeast Ohio and among the lowest in the state. Ninety percent of Tri-C grads from career programs

find gainful employment, with 83 percent in their field of study, giving them the opportunity to boast

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that more than 1,000 companies have hired or contracted Tri-C students in 2013 alone. Sixty-one

percent of the student body are female and 35

percent are minority. They are number one in

Ohio and 28th in the U.S. in awarding associate

degrees to African Americans. More than

41,000 students have transferred to four-year

universities since 2009. They are one of 10 best

training organizations in the United States as

rated by trainingindustry.com. In January

2015, Tri-C launched a 3D/Additive Design

Program to continue to offer businesses

employees who are suited for in-demand jobs.

Barriers

They face barriers due to racial and ethnic differences, citing economic backgrounds affect

college and career readiness. Black and Latino students are likely to arrive at colleges with greater

needs for academic skill development. Some students lack motivation, confidence, familiarity and

support. There are many factors to life that can create barriers to success.

Recommendations

Flexibility in funding is needed to provide wrap around and remedial services in order to close

the equity gap. Personal connections matter. Funding is needed to provide opportunities for students

to engage in academic, career development and cultural activities. Legislation should extend Pell Grants

to workforce training programs. Establish funding mechanisms to provide role model and mentorship

programs beginning in Kindergarten and going all the way to the twelfth grade. Engagement and

support are key to long term transformational success.

Jan Ridgeway - Garden Valley Neighborhood House

Organization Overview

GVNH reopened under board control in 2010 after closing in 2009. It is the largest food pantry

in NE Ohio, feeding more than 10,200 people per month and garnering awards for its holistic approach

to solving hunger. Nearly all of its clients live at 200 percent poverty level or below. GVNH provides

employment training, workplace readiness, GED education and attainment, cooking and dance classes,

health and nutrition literacy, tutoring and mentoring, and cultural relevancy programs. Its work is

directed toward helping clients transform their thinking and attitudes toward themselves, others, and

their community, and the organization’s core mission is to eliminate hunger and encourage self-

sufficiency and self-empowerment.

Barriers

The major community barriers identified are a high number of single female households, and

high number of black males ages 16-24 in the criminal justice system; high unemployment, violent

crime, and domestic/child abuse; low literacy and large high school dropout rate (roughly 65-70 percent

read at 4th grade level or below); high number of children in kinship care; and highest HIV/AIDS diagnosis

rate in Greater Cleveland. The barriers to GVNH are low funding, as most programs are self-funded; not

“TRI-C SPECIALIZES IN PROVIDING SERVICES

THAT HELP THE REGION’S EMPLOYERS

DEVELOP THE WORKFORCE THEY NEED

TODAY AND FOR THE FUTURE.”

William Gary Sr. – Cuyahoga Community College

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enough volunteers with proper skillsets; aged facility with high utility costs; attitudes and stigmas of and

toward those who are served.

Lisa Bottoms – The Cleveland Foundation

Organization Overview

The Cleveland Foundation focuses on systems change and quality programming. The

Foundation, along with Cuyahoga County and the city of Cleveland, have pledged $4.5 million over

seven years to build public will through new partnerships, make data driven decisions, optimize systems

and opportunities, and evaluate and provide quality services to community youth. It has recently

developed MyCom, a network of stakeholders that provide youth access to caring adults and quality

programs that build 21st Century skills for youth. MyCom represents roughly $20.8 million in community

investment and provides youth with a clear pathway to college or sustainable employment, creates a

network of care and support among Cleveland adults and organizations, and produces human capital for

the workforce. In the first five years of MyCom more than 14,000 youth have been engaged, 1,200

college visits have been conducted, 6,700 tutoring and mentoring activities have been provided, and

11,500 youth have been employed in summer or full-time jobs across 577 employers.

Barriers

Before the MyCom system was developed the Cleveland Foundation faced many barriers faced

by other organizations such as not engaging young people and viewing them as part of the solution,

having multiple nonprofits and government agencies working with the same young but not sharing

information with each other, a lack of accountability for what works and what does not, a wide range of

different disconnected systems, processes and standards, and no timely data to inform decision making.

Recommendations

A youth development theory of change should include a vision or goal, a building up of youth

skills, and a system and network for core support of each youth.

Lowell Perry – Central Promise Neighborhood

Organization Overview

The goal of the Central Promise Neighborhood is to transform the educational and

developmental outcomes of children in the Central Neighborhood of Cleveland, closing gaps in

achievement and creating a more robust cradle-to-career pipeline for youth. The Central Neighborhood

contains three elementary schools, one high school, two universities (Tri-C and Cleveland State), one

hospital, and many non-profits.

Barriers

Two-thirds of families live in public housing, with a median household income of $11,483, and

the child poverty rate is 82 percent.

Recommendations

The Promise Strategies are to prepare kids for school, support them academically by increasing

attendance and achievement rates, provide college or post-secondary options for all kids in Central

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Neighborhood, create a stable and healthy family and community atmosphere, and make change from

the inside out.

Elizabeth Newman – The Centers for Families and Children

Organization Overview

The Centers for Family and Children are guided by the belief that the circumstances of birth

should not be the sole determinant to one’s future. They recognize that the first 2,000 days of a child’s

life – the time when 90 percent of brain development occurs – sets a strong foundation for success in

school and life. The Centers connects roughly 25,000 people and families annually with services,

resources, relationships, and networks to promote stability and success. The core programming

includes integrated health services, child care and preschool, workforce development, youth and family

services, and basic needs services. Roughly 1,300 children receive early childhood education per year,

and The Centers provides 13,000 low-income Ohioans with mental health issues with care and

treatment annually. Between January and June of 2015, 122 individuals have found gainful employment

and 75 percent have retained that job for 90 days. About 3,900 people have been trained and employed

since 2010, which is why The Centers is recognized nationally as a best practice model.

Recommendations

The El Barrio Workforce Development Center, which is a part of The Centers, puts people on a

path, within an industry, to advance professionally, grow their skills, and pursue a career. Workforce

organizations should, just like El Barrio, provide an individualized approach and support services, and

have partnerships with many public organizations, non-profit organizations, and for-profit businesses

and corporations.

Anne Sweeney – Legal Aid Society of Cleveland

Organization Overview

Attorneys are not constitutionally provided in civil cases, therefore Legal Aid works to provide

service to low-income individuals in civil court cases. Examples include evictions, foreclosures, divorces,

custody disputes, garnishments, debt collection, termination of assistance, audits, utility shutoffs,

protection orders, disabled students seeking individual education plans, and identity theft. It helps

clients overcome language barriers and file for reduced or eliminated court fees, which low-income

individuals cannot overcome without help. In 2014, 2,600 community members were educated by

presentations and service providers.

Barriers

The inability to retain an attorney is one of the biggest challenges facing lower income individuals

when trying to navigate the legal system to protect basic needs such as income and housing. Limited

English proficiency, as well as limited literacy, discrimination, and mental and physical disabilities

exacerbate other barriers to effectively using the courts and other systems. Also, a lack of legal

information is an issue for low income people trying to resolve fundamental problems and who do not

have an attorney.

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Recommendations

Resolving civil legal issues is a way to help people stay out of poverty or from falling deeper into

it. Additional funding will allow Legal Aid to provide more services.

Amy Hanauer – Policy Matters Ohio

Organization Overview

As a nonprofit policy research institute, Policy Matters has found the identifiable barriers to

Ohioans in poverty as low wages, high cost of childcare, lack of transportation, and lack of training for

in-demand jobs.

Barriers

The Governor’s Office report from the Workgroup to Reduce Reliance on Public Assistance found

that a family of one adult and two children needs a minimum income of $27,644 to no longer require

public assistance. Of Ohio families earning less than 200 percent of the poverty level, roughly 70 percent

are working.

Recommendations

Make economic mobility a goal of legislative action. Prioritize education and job training, such

as through implementation of the new Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, and improve job

quality. Make college even more affordable. Find ways to improve and make childcare affordable.

Provide the Earned Income Tax Credit. Provide additional funding for healthcare, transit, hunger

support, and local government.

Rose Frech – Center for Community Solutions

Organization Overview

The Center for Community Solutions is a nonpartisan think tank focused on solutions to health,

social and economic issues. It provides strategic leadership and organizes community resources to

improve health, social, and economic conditions through applied demographic research, communication

and nonpartisan policy analysis and advocacy.

Barriers

The organization has found that Ohio youth between the ages of 16 and 24, a quarter of whom

live in poverty, 15 percent have not completed high school, 19 percent are unemployed, and roughly 10

percent of youth experience depression. Additionally, girls between 15 and 19 get pregnant and give

birth at rates far exceeding the national average.

Recommendations

Ohio’s new Comprehensive Case Management and Employment Program will be critical to

providing individualized pathways out of poverty. Ohio Works First services and training must be paired

with sufficient opportunities. Provisions of case management to clients at home and small, manageable

caseloads are critical to accessibility, quality of contact, and barrier reduction. Provisions of resources to

pursue higher wage jobs is critical to avoid clients returning to poverty. Assuring clients are capable of

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pursuing the program as well as avoiding duplicating services is necessary to program success.

Individualization and incentivizing success also is necessary to promote self-sufficiency and success.

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Tuesday, August 18th, 2015 – Cincinnati The Oyler School staff took legislators and staff on a tour through the model community learning center

to highlight the highly successful model of community input and collaborative partnership. The

committee members and staff then had lunch at CityLink Center and heard from each of its partner

agencies on their specific tasks, united for the benefit of addressing poverty solution for the whole

person and not just siloes and fractions of the individuals needs. The committee took place at another

location inside CityLink Center.

Johnmark Oudersluys - CityLink Center

Organization Overview

CityLink is a city-wide initiative started by a group of social service agencies who recognized the

need for integrated services. The founding partners reached out to the faith-based community for

support in realizing their vision. CityLink leverages the strengths of various social service agencies in

Cincinnati and continues to build support from a broad base of faith-based, corporate, foundation and

individual supporters.

Barriers

The community is agency heavy, with $1 billion invested each year in social services. However,

the individuals these agencies look to serve are unaware of the resources and how to navigate these

services. Many of these agencies have one specific area of expertise, forcing the client to seek out

multiple agencies without the resources to do so. A complex system exists that approaches individuals

in an indirect way with silos that trap individuals in a compartmentalized structure. If a client

successfully understands program qualifications, the geographic barrier to access remains. For the client

who can successfully understand and physically navigate to services, there is the emotional toll of

entering service after service to repeat their story of why they are “in need.” This creates challenges for

social service providers and

individuals become stripped of

their dignity and self-worth.

Recommendations

Co- location: Leading agencies

in one location removes one of

the largest barriers individuals

face when seeking help, and

allows increased engagement

for not only those individuals

but the agencies and services

they seek. Clients tell their

story one time to a

caseworker, who then

becomes their single point of

“SOCIAL MOBILITY IS HIGHER IN INTEGRATED

(RACE AND ECONOMIC) PLACES WITH GOOD

SCHOOLS, STRONG FAMILIES, LOTS OF

COMMUNITY SPIRIT AND SMALLER INCOME

GAPS WITHIN THE BROAD MIDDLE CLASS.”

Johnmark Oudersluys – CityLink Center

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contact, equipping them with an advocate to navigate them through the channels and resources that

are available to them. Clinical counseling engagement has dramatically increased due to the soft-

introduction and anonymity of the service.

Peggy Zink – Cincinnati Works

Organization Overview

In the past three years, 494 job-seekers have completed the Job Readiness Workshop. Of

those, 322 have secured employment in 501 jobs. Cincinnati Works found a higher rate of return

through collaboration on a single campus, specifically the partnership with CityLink Center, where the

chronically underemployed can access a team of complementary integrated services. Individuals being

served can seamlessly work on multiple goals at once and make faster progress towards economic

stability. The long-standing philosophy of Cincinnati Works to is to “partner vs. build” – that is, to focus

on our core competency of employment, and partner with other quality organizations who are experts

in their respective fields to complement our services.

Recommendations

Co-location gives an individual a tailored plan for success by leveraging more services in the

community. A workforce program might not help an individual maintain stable employment, especially

at a livable wage, if there are multiple barriers to success that are unable to be addressed by the single

program. Members should be members for life. In so many ways, it is harder to keep a job than it is to

get a job. It is critical to have ongoing support, encouragement, and resources. Moving from poverty to

economic self-sufficiency is a multi-year issue. Job placement is just one early step in the process.

Clara Martin – Cincinnati Arts and Technical Center

Organization Overview

Cincinnati Arts and Tech has 400 students per year, and has served 3,600 students since its

inception, using the transformational power of the arts, the influence of environment and a strong

message of success. They boast an average graduation rate of 93 percent over the past six years, and 40

to 50 percent of graduating students enroll in college. It supports students for 18 months and into

employment for job retention. A life skills program that helps build foundational skills for workplace

success and future professional development builds on the art programs, which function as a transition

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to college/career experience, coaching at-risk teens in basic success skills such as time management,

interviewing and maintaining a professional demeanor.

Recommendations

The Bridging the Gap workforce development program has made it possible to offer a broad

continuum of post-secondary options to a population with an array of needs, including mental health

and counseling, college access services, behavioral coaching, transportation, life skills programming, job

readiness skills training, mentoring, parent/caring adult engagement, employer engagement, and

training and job certification programs. Students may need additional support in transition and funding

for these supports is not conducive to long term commitments.

Dan Meyer – Nehemiah Manufacturing

Organization Overview

The mission is to create jobs for those who need it most, and to hire those who need a second

chance. Some processes in manufacturing require less educational background, such as packaging and

liquid filling, which gives the ability to hire someone with little skills so they can have a job while working

on other barriers to greater success. Instead of an HR department, there is a full time social worker who

can find out what individuals’ dreams are and try to create a plan to help them realize that dream. If

someone fails a drug test, they get a six-month waiting period before being brought back to get tested

again to make sure they want to be there. They give second and third chances. Instead of being fired,

those struggling with true drug problems are given a leave of absence in hopes they can overcome their

addictions and return to their jobs.

Recommendations

There are many barriers to

finding employment for individuals who

have been incarcerated, and collateral

sanctions need to continue to be

reevaluated. Companies can be highly

productive and profitable, proving that

profit, and social and economic

developments are not exclusive.

Business recruitment through the

Department of Development and

JobsOhio should be able to work with

companies strategically for the dual

purpose of employment and

neighborhood stabilization.

“OVER THE PAST 5 YEARS WE HAVE

LEARNED A LOT. WE SEE PEOPLE WHO ARE

UNABLE TO CONTRIBUTE START

CONTRIBUTING. THE IMPACT IT HAS ON

THEIR FAMILY AND ON THEM TO BE ABLE TO

CONTRIBUTE AND FOR US TO BE ABLE TO

HELP INSTILL THAT PURPOSE IN SOMEONE IS

AMAZING.”

Dan Meyer – Nehemiah Manufacturing

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Sherry Marshall – Ohio Means Jobs of Hamilton County

Organization Overview

The mission is to assist job seekers to obtain the skills needed by employers in order to improve

the regional economy and opportunity for all. It seeks to provide employers with a prepared workforce

by connecting job-seeking customers to opportunities that build their career readiness, thereby

contributing to the growth of the community and region. The organization is a leader in regional

workforce planning and initiatives as well as localized workforce planning. The Executive Workforce

Board provides experience to direct the local area workforce board. As part of its efforts, the number of

recipients of cash assistance in Hamilton County fell 60 percent from (4,478 to 1,820) from 2011 to

2015.

Recommendations

Workforce Boards should operate as a 501(c)3 to allow for the ability to raise private funds to

use for direct services. This allows for a maximization of funds and flexibility in spending for specific

community needs. Workforce boards should recruit at least 51 percent business and employer

representatives and at least two labor and an apprenticeship training program leader. Hire executive

leadership that has appropriate experience to direct the local area workforce board—such as nonprofit

management, economic development, human resources, education and training, grant writing and

financial management, and federal programming. Engage in career pathway partnerships and industry

sector initiatives. Lead in regional workforce planning and initiatives as well as localized workforce

planning. Provide online information to the community about performance and basic labor information.

Implement Eligible Training Provider (ETP) evaluations to eliminate non-performing ETP’s. Create one-

stop centers as an avenue for cost sharing. Implement employer performance measures as part of local

performance expectations. Prohibit internally conflicted entities from handling of procurement of WIOA

services themselves. Utilize technology to expand customer services and system improvements.

Dr. O’Dell Owens - Cincinnati State Technical and Community College

Organization Overview

Cincinnati State was founded in 1969 on two core principles: 1) Provide a high-quality,

technical, job-oriented education, and 2) incorporate co-op education, paid workplace experience

related to a student’s major, in the academic curriculum. Cincinnati State is one of the most robust co-

op programs in the state, with participation from more than 600 corporate partners. The average

enrollment in 2014-2015 academic year was about 10,500; 60 percent attended classes part-time, 29

percent are between the ages of 19-22, 19 percent are between 25-29, and 22 percent are between 30-

39.

Recommendations

Cincinnati State has been effective in pulling people out of poverty due to free counseling,

advising, writing and tutoring services, as well as certifications for prior experience in the military or the

workforce. Additionally, training partnerships with area businesses like General Electric, AK Steel and

Ford Motor Company are integral in preparing for future workforce demands and understanding the

necessary components of a valuable employee.

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Dr. Robert Kahn - Cincinnati Children’s Hospital

Organization Overview

Cincinnati Children’s has a Medicaid office in the hospital in response to research and previous

experience with conditions of children living in poor neighborhoods. Children’s health varies

tremendously by neighborhood. The disparities are largely environmental, not genetic, and are highly

correlated with poverty. These variations are associated with remediable hardships. Cincinnati

Children’s Hospital Medical Center’s three primary care clinics see more than 60,000 medical visits per

year. These relationships are often longitudinal and trusting.

Barriers

Cincinnati Children’s works with organizations like Cincinnati Works and the Urban League to

connect parents to job training resources, GED prep classes, and early childhood resources like Head

Start. They have physically redesigned the waiting room in the main primary care clinic to include a

“genius bar” and resource wall with materials and tablets where families can access this kind of

information. They have also just hired a community resource liaison, who will be in the waiting room to

help families connect to community agencies. Through these partnerships and the utilization of

technology, Cincinnati Children’s is able to address the root cause of poor health which oftentimes

stems from poverty.

Recommendations

The hospital’s mission is to be the leader in improving child health, not just healthcare. To

improve child health, interventions are needed that address family crisis and promote opportunities for

hope. Partnerships with Legal Aid, foodbanks, free stores, and workforce development programs are

crucial to helping solve issues that affect health outcomes.

Precious Jones - City Gospel Mission

Organization Overview

The mission of City Gospel Mission is to break the cycle of poverty and despair one life at a time.

The Whiz Kids Tutoring and Mentoring Program uses relationships with at-risk youth to break the cycle

of poverty because the tutors transform into mentors over time. City Gospel Mission engages tutors

and mentors to impact youth and their families across four areas – physical, social, mental, and spiritual.

Recommendations

Partner with schools and churches to place consistent, caring adults into the lives of at-risk

youth. Research shows that a focus on education, a caring adult, and the faith community are critical

elements for an at-risk child to succeed. Whiz Kids Tutoring and Mentoring brings all three of these

components together and has seen lives transformed as a result of it. Use mentors to provide teens with

a valuable place to spend free time. Mentors commit to spending at least 1 hour per week with their

mentee. Mentoring has allowed volunteers to not only impact the life of a child, but to also build

relationship with the mentee’s family. Establish mentor coaching programs to improve relationships

between mentor and mentee.

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Jon Graft—Butler Count ESC

Organization Overview

The Butler County Success Program currently partners with eight school districts in Butler

County and one school district in Preble County. The program employs 20 staff members, who are

referred to as liaisons, and serves 53 school buildings across Butler and Preble Counties. Liaisons are

housed in the partnering school buildings and are viewed by their school building staff as crucial team

members. The program is funded primarily by TANF dollars from the Butler County Department of Job

and Family Services and by partnering school districts. In Preble County, the program is funded by

shared dollars from the National Trail Local School District and Preble County’s Job and Family Services,

Mental Health Board and Juvenile Court.

Recommendations

Remove non-cognitive barriers to learning in order to promote school success by addressing

factors which interfere with children being able to concentrate and focus when they are in the

classroom—such as arriving at school hungry, being homeless, having unmet medical or dental needs,

etc. Establish partnerships with community agencies, places of business and faith-based entities. Often,

faith-based agencies can “fill in the gap” where social service agencies are not able to provide the

services.

Janice Urbanik—Partner for Competitive Workforce—United Way of Greater Cincinnati

Organization Overview

Partners for a Competitive Workforce (PCW) was formed in 2008 in response to the significant

challenges being faced by employers in the tri-state region to find the talent they need to sustain and

grow their businesses and at the same time, to serve the large number of residents in the community

who were seeking employment or better jobs. PCW is an employer-led collaboration of over 150

partners who are employers, workforce investment boards, higher education, community based

organizations, chambers of commerce, and funders (i.e. anyone who has a significant interest and stake

in developing the workforce in the region). PCW is currently working in five industry sectors -

healthcare, manufacturing, construction, information technology, and

transportation/distribution/logistics.

Recommendations

First, build families – by taking a multi-generational approach rather than serving just the kids

or just the parents, systems, programs and policies can address the needs of children and their parents

together to harness the family’s full potential and put the entire family on the path to permanent

economic security can be developed. Second, build neighborhoods - build strong communities with a

place-based, community-driven approach that integrates services where people live, learn and work.

Leverage community assets to identify families who need assistance as well as encourage families to

enroll in the training programs they need to build their skills to get the jobs that are out there. Third,

improve jobs – work with employers on strategies that build their business bottom line through

investments in their front line, lower wage employees. By viewing employees as assets to be leveraged

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vs. expenses to be minimized, it has been proven that businesses become more productive, profitable,

and responsive to their customer needs and their employees and their families benefit at the same time.

Darlene Kamine—Oyler School

Organization Overview

Oyler School is a new approach to public education that engages the community in a deep,

genuine process by restoring the school as the center of the community and as a hub for education,

culture, recreation, health, and as a civic center for the neighborhood.

Recommendations

There are three essential points that were and still remain the foundation of the Oyler School

strategy. First, all schools in the district—not just low performing or low income schools—were to be

community learning centers. This is an opportunity to restore the school as the center of every

neighborhood. Second, each school and its neighborhood were to engage in an ongoing planning

process to create their shared vision and select the partnerships they wanted to achieve their unique

vision. This site-based choice is absolutely critical to the foundation of community learning centers and

the success of revitalization of schools and neighborhoods. Third, to ensure that each school community

would retain local control, governance was to be at the site level through a local school decision-making

committee comprised of equal numbers of parents, community members, teachers, and administrators

selected by their respective constituencies. This kind of grassroots leadership and local control has

proven to be the key difference maker in genuine transformation and accountability.

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Tuesday, September 15th 2015 – East Liverpool The committee members and staff met at the Columbiana County Sheriff’s Department to hear about

the effects of drugs in the community, in which they estimate over 90 percent of arrests are due to

some type of drug issue. Hope Christian Fellowship drove the members and staff on a tour of the

neighborhoods of East Liverpool to witness the difference in rural poverty to urban poverty. The

committee took place at the East Liverpool Kent State Branch.

Kelly Darney – Columbiana County Career and Technical Center

Organization Overview

The mission of the Columbiana County Career and Technical Center is to help find suitable and

sustainable employment for students. The CCCTC offers all services necessary for low-income students

to be successful including financial aid, tutoring, part time employment, externships, work-based

learning, flexible scheduling, and access to ABLE services.

Barriers

The typical student population works in retail, fast food or lawn care, which is not enough to

sustain a family. Therefore they resort to multiple jobs, public assistance, or illegal activity. The job

market has changed significantly in the region, and the new push toward medical and industrial careers

is not reflective of the workforce development system.

Recommendations

For individuals who are unable to test into the career training programs, ABLE is offered for

remedial help. Unfortunately, the hardest-to-reach individuals are the ones who need ABLE.

Collaboration is necessary to reach all types of individuals in poverty since there is not a one-size fits-all

program that can solve the issue of poverty.

Judge Carol Robb – 7th District Court of Appeals

Organization Overview

The court uses the program model of “Getting Ahead In A Just Getting By World” for remedial

sentencing in some circumstances. The court has developed a mentoring program to work alongside the

Getting Ahead program for improved results. The Getting Ahead program has realized $54,408 savings

in entitlement programs per year since 2011 for seven tracked graduates who received gainful

employment, while reducing recidivism among all graduates to 21 percent. These results enabled the

Municipal Court to receive a grant of $3,000 per year to continue its progress. With juveniles, the court

has worked with school systems to find out how children in generational poverty learn. The test scores

were higher by the end of the year than before because children in poverty learn differently.

Recommendations

Employers, institutions, and the community need to understand and utilize the differences of

mental models laid out in the Bridges program. The results are what the Municipal Court predicted:

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higher employment retention, savings in tax dollars, and lower risk of recidivism in the judicial system

when poverty is understood and addressed according to the needs of those who live in it.

Eileen Dray-Barden – Columbiana County Jobs and Family Services

Organization Overview

Columbiana County Jobs and Family Services is the county-level administrator of the federally

mandated assistance programs. They operate under the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services

and administer food and cash assistance programs, Medicaid enrollment, child support programs,

children and elderly services, and job services.

Barriers

Some individuals that come though the system simply lack motivation and are unable to

complete the necessary steps to work their way out of poverty. Minimum-wage and part-time work will

not raise people out of poverty; a concept that is not understood by the new generation of working

poor. No one gets out of poverty on $250 a week. The new version of self-sufficiency seen at the office

is parents bringing in their children to “fend for themselves.”

Recommendations

A higher rate of return by the JFS system will be realized when a common understanding

between individuals is developed. This must build on a common strategy (mix of resources and people

served), and focus efforts on a particular group of

individuals (i.e. the new Comprehensive Case

Management model). CCJFS identifies the three

most frequently mentioned ways to move people

out of poverty: improve access to GED training

and testing; improve access to reliable

transportation; and find ways to provide

motivation. Another is to make a more stable

workforce for employers and help get rid of the

revolving door to add additional emphasis on life

after public schools and incentivize positive

behavior.

Kathie Chaffee and Maureen Waybright – Columbiana County Mental Health and Recovery Services

Organization Overview

Columbiana County Mental Health and Recovery Services works on reducing barriers of

obtaining and maintaining sustainable jobs of people with substance abuse or mental health problems.

They provide temporary social services that encourage individuals to get the treatment and training they

need to successfully land a job.

Barriers

Due to the structure of government provided assistance, nonprofit partners will advise

“MANY WELL-INTENTIONED PROGRAMS

FOSTER DEPENDENCY INSTEAD OF SELF-

SUFFICIENCY FOR THEIR RECIPIENTS. A

CHANGE IN APPROACH IN NEEDED.”

Judge Carol Robb – 7th

District Court of Appeals

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individuals to not take a job, or not take a raise, since it will lead to a loss of benefits. Individuals should

be counseled on the benefits of a job and that life can be significantly better outside of public housing.

The most difficult type of assistance is car repair or access to reliable transportation. There is a stigma

on individuals with mental health issues that affects their ability to earn and maintain a job. The stigma

is that these individuals will not be reliable or good employees.

Recommendations

Obtaining employment during a substance abuse recovery process is extremely important.

Some individuals may not want a job, or may not be interested in a particular type of job. Therefore,

funding only through OOD will not give local organizations the resources they need to help individuals

overcome barriers. Bridging different types of assistance, like medical coverage, transportation and

professional work attire, is important for those first few months of a job.

Wesley Vins – Columbiana County General Health District

Organization Overview

The mission of the Columbiana County General Health District is to contribute to the present

and future health of persons living in the District through the provision of personal and environmental

health services and by the performance of activities dealing with the prevention of illness. Strong

communities value the undeniable connection between economics, education and health.

Barriers

There are three main health issues people in poverty are facing in Columbiana County: 1) state

mandated accreditation for Local Health Districts, which threatens funding; 2) immunization rates are

incredibly low, at 63.4 percent, accounting for additional health problems where the associated costs of

tracking and treatment can reach $10,000 per case, and the measles vaccines costs range from $19-$71;

and 3) the infant mortality rate is too high.

Recommendations

Addressing these barriers – reducing or eliminating burdensome mandated accreditation,

increasing immunization, and reducing infant mortality - will lead to families’ ability to secure good jobs

and achieve greater independence. There is no greater loss to a family and a community than the loss

of a child; to eliminate this issue is to eliminate life changing barriers like access to vaccines.

23

Carol Cowan – East Liverpool Health Commission

Organization Overview

There is a well-documented and undeniable

chronic disease concern in Columbiana County and

across Ohio. This includes sobering statistics that have

been in gradual decline over the years, with Ohio

ranking as the 40th healthiest state. There is solid

evidence that infant mortality rate is correlated with

nutritional deficiencies resulting from poorer quality

diets. Obesity and diabetes drastically increases

pregnancy complications.

Barriers

The Ohio Department of Health’s “The Impact on

Chronic Disease 2015,” explains that the cost of

healthcare in Ohio is upward of more than $25 billion

and is projected to increase 73 percent within 10 years.

Many, especially individuals in poverty, do not realize

their food choices can be detrimental to their health.

There is a high number of individuals suffering from

chronic, yet preventable, diseases.

Recommendations

The state should use the power of education to

address the necessity for healthier choices, while we

pool our resources and imaginations to continue seeking

new ways to engage Ohio families over the long term.

There should be mandatory nutrition courses in school,

especially to address the negative effects that high sugar

consumption has on health. SNAP recipients should

receive nutrition classes with cooking coaches and

educators. For programs to succeed they must be

designed by people who have first-hand insight into local

people’s circumstances and designed to be relevant to

the citizens being served. Families should take the lead

in educating children in making healthy nutrition

choices. This is not happening in the most at-need

communities.

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Ray Travelene – Hot Dog Shoppe

Organization Overview

For most people, the Hot Dog Shoppe is their first job, which teaches the importance and dignity

of work. “Manual labor is healthy; you’re not going to go to hell for manual labor.”

Barriers

Kids do not mature now as quickly as they used to, and now they need more time in their

twenties to figure out life. Home life has also changed, with fewer siblings and standard two-parent

families. People from East Liverpool used to go to Cleveland to get their first job, but now those entry

level jobs are being consumed by people who are trying to make a living and raise a family. We are

losing the value of service. “It is a lost art.” If you are not raised that way you do not see the service that

it is to serve. This is due to a failing education system, lack of training, limited interaction with adults,

and lack of a working influence. Many youth also struggle with mental health and have little access to

the help they need.

Recommendations

Increasing the minimum wage would squeeze out the opportunities for these kids to have a first

job; a job that teaches responsibility, the importance of work and the value of manual labor. The

JobsCorp program age should be moved up to 26-27. Also, there should be an opportunity for a year of

public service after high school. Increasing GED access and training, as well as online education, and

instituting positive role models in the community will help to push youth toward work and self-

sufficiency.

Mike Mancuso – Salem Area Sustainable Opportunity Development Center

Organization Overview

The mission of the Sustainable Opportunity Development Center is to develop and promote a

rich sustainable entrepreneurial environment for the Salem area that supports business and job growth

through new startups, existing business retention/expansion and attracts outside enterprises looking for

a new home. The Sustainable Opportunity Development Center leads the way in micropolitan economic

and community development by creating a collaborative environment that reaches outside political

boundaries to include local and regional leadership with local input to build a collaborative effort.

Barriers

Illegal drug use: job applicants are having a hard time passing a drug test. There is a lack of

workforce development at an early age, with little time remaining in the classroom for this critical

component, giving an additional advantage to college graduates; this is why the middle class is shrinking.

There is a lack of work readiness skills, like character issues. There is a lack of personal financial training

and lack of credit understanding, in turn, excluding individuals from employment opportunities. The

Affordable Care Act has made a disincentive to hire people for more than 30 hours a week, creating less

productivity and larger turnover, making it difficult to compete. When these barriers exist in the

community it is more difficult to attract jobs.

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Recommendations

Bring together a specific group to help treat the addicted. Leverage the already existing

network of vocational education facilities. Leverage already existing programs, both public and private,

to work with the current workforce to get it up to speed with industry needs. Bring educational

resources together to develop a collaborative response to the issues with a plan to implement.

D.R. Gossett – Ironton-Lawrence Co. Area Community Action Partnership

Organization Overview

The Ironton-Lawrence County Community Action Partnership provides high-quality services to

eligible residents on a non-discriminatory basis in a dignified manner, which will promote family values.

The Partnership works diligently to improve the economic conditions of the community toward the

elimination of the causes of poverty. It promotes decent housing, health care, job training, education,

and employment opportunities in a concentrated effort to remove barriers to self-respect and reach

maximum potential.

Barriers

Individuals struggling the most cost communities and themselves exponentially more resources.

Drug and alcohol abuse and addiction, poor health, incarceration, unemployment and lack of gainful

jobs, and lack of vision or motivation are issues faced by those in poverty.

Recommendations

Key drivers to poverty that can be addressed are addiction, poor health, incarceration, lack of

division or direction, lack of jobs, weak workforce resources. Emphasize “pay for success” type grants

where employers are investors, and performances are independently evaluated. Insist on full

implementation of flexibility features when utilizing federal funds. Give much more flexibility, much less

bureaucracy and focus on much more accountability on trackable results. Fund community initiatives

based on goals to be achieved without creating an inflexible structure that all communities have to

follow. Recognize that one-size doesn’t fit all. Make sure each community and each positive partner

has the ability to grow and improve. Don’t kill success stories by imposing monolithic structures.

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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29th, 2015 - COLUMBUS The committee held its final summer hearing at the Ohio Statehouse as a central location for any

organization who wished to testify. Although each organization provided different solutions to reducing

poverty – job training, housing, mentoring – education was a consistent theme in each program.

Rev. Jeff Gill – Newark Central Christian Church

Organization Overview

Newark Central Christian is part of a fellowship of churches in the United States and Canada

called “Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).” They believe the heart of the issues affecting community

and family problems, is a hope deficit. People struggling to find stability need to find the

encouragement to keep going when they feel as if they’re giving their best and still getting nowhere.

Barriers

No-shows, to social service appointments, and truancy in schools are chronic and persistent. It’s

not drug use, it’s not indifference and it’s not laziness. The phenomenon is due to a sense that it just

doesn’t matter no matter what they do.

Recommendations

When laziness is perceived, it can

actually be hopelessness. Mediation and

restorative justice concepts allow people to see

more distant possibilities than people can see in

themselves. A single state plan is not preferred

as individual plans and accommodations are

always necessary when dealing with at-risk

populations.

Karin VanZant – CareSource

Organization Overview

CareSource is a health care organization contracted with the State of Ohio and others to

administer Medicaid managed care plans. They developed a program called Life Services in January

2015 after studying the determents of health. The goal is to work with 15,000 members a year. Life

Services looks at 18 different areas in a members’ lives, and connect those individuals with organizations

that already exist. Many employers are reaching out and saying if the program participants can pass a

drug test and show up to a job they will be hired. Of the 700 members, only three have not followed

through with the service plan. They are then assessed by a nurse and referred to a clinical care

managed plan.

Recommendations

Judge success as not just maintaining health, but as getting a job and working. Low income

“I WANT YOU AS OUR LEGISLATORS AND

POLICY MAKERS TO BE AWARE OF THE VERY

DIRECT IMPACTS OF A ‘HOPE DEFICIT.’”

Rev. Jeff Gill – Newark Central Christian Church

27

individuals usually need to overcome more than one barrier with little resources to do so. Managed

care plans can make an impact on workforce, since the Ohio Means Jobs partnership is accessing

member skills and workforce history to help the Life Services program. Continue to help members when

they receive jobs, helping them to work through the subsidies as they are removed. Working means

subsidies decrease and therefore members need help working through those issues as they arise.

Jeff Davis – Ohio Provider Resource Association

Organization Overview

The Ohio Provider Resource Association is a statewide association of service providers and is a

leader in efforts to collaboratively build a statewide service system that meets the needs of their

ultimate customers: Ohioans with developmental disabilities. Currently, OPRA’s membership consists of

more than 125 organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit, providing services to more than 15,000

Ohioans with developmental disabilities. OPRA represents approximately 70 percent of the state’s

community-based providers. They have developed C3PO: A classroom program for at-risk kids who

might not be on the path to graduation but who have a caregiving heart. The program targets Juniors

and Seniors in high school, providing them with on-site internships. When they graduate from high

school they will have a certificate to work in caregiving.

Barriers

A caregiver crisis exists that is both economic and geographic. The number-one in-demand job is

a home health care worker, and due to the low wages, providers have a high difficulty of attracting and

retaining employees.

Recommendations

Increase wages for direct-care workers and achieve an average wage of $15 per hour. Reform

the system by shifting focus from activities to outcomes with savings from efficiencies reinvested in the

direct-care workforce. And, improve worker satisfaction for lower turnover rates.

Allen Smith – Ohio Alliance for Boys and Girls Clubs

Organization Overview

The Boys and Girls Clubs currently serve 45,000 kids at 63 sites throughout Ohio. It bridges the

gap between school and home and plays a critical role in helping children from at-risk neighborhoods

succeed, as well as focus on a strong moral

compass and healthy life choices. The Clubs

are in areas where poverty is often three to

four times higher than the state average and

are the largest provider of the Kid Café

Program. Special summer programs, like the

Summer Brain Game, help bridge the grade

loss that exists for children in poverty. From

2012-2014, 85 to 90 percent of children

served had a grade level increase.

“LOW-INCOME CHILDREN SPEND 6,000

FEWER HOURS ENGAGED IN LEARNING TIME.”

Allen Smith – Ohio Alliance for Boys and Girls Clubs

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Barriers

Children living in poverty perform worse than their middle and upper income peers academically

– this gap in performance is commonly referred to as the “Achievement Gap.” Over the course of their

K-12 education, low income children spend 6,000 fewer hours engaged in learning time than their

middle and upper income peers. Most of this gap is the result of a lack of access to out of school time

learning.

Suggestions

Location is extremely important. Services must be provided where they are needed, especially

due to a lack of reliable transportation in at-risk communities. Bridge the achievement gap by providing

tutoring and homework help every day after school, and especially throughout the summer to account

for summer learning loss.

Sean Thomas – Ohio Housing Finance Agency

Organization Overview

The Ohio Housing Finance Agency was created in 1983 as a division of the Department of

Development, and is now a quasi-public, self-supporting agency governed by a board of directors.

Because of this structure OHFA, is able to leverage its resources to provide access to affordable housing,

create jobs and strengthen communities. OHFA houses programs for first-time home-buyers, individuals

with special needs and individuals with low income. Since 1983, OHFA has issued over $11 billion in

mortgage revenue bonds that have allowed more than 140,000 Ohioans in all 88 counties to become

homeowners. OHFA has also helped with the creation and preservation of more than 100,000 affordable

rental-housing units during that same time period.

Barriers

Every year OHFA produces a Housing Needs Assessment that is used for planning and developing

programs. The current report shows that Ohio’s affordable housing needs continue to grow and exceed

available resources required to address these issues. Ohio has an older housing stock, an aging

population, and severely distressed urban neighborhoods and rural communities. Income is also a major

component of housing needs. Close to 400,000 Ohio households pay more than 50 percent or more of

their income toward rent.

Recommendations

Invest in supportive housing programs that consist of safe, quality housing with on-site wrap-

around services. Results from these properties show a reduction in costly emergency room visits and

hospitalizations by residents. Specialized housing like the Columbus Scholar House for single women

with children and Hopewell Cottages can have on-site workforce training for the residents. Safe,

quality, affordable housing provides the foundation to help people change their lives and lift themselves

out of poverty, and coupled with on-site services, the impact of these investments can be maximized.

29

Col Owens – Legal Aid Society of Southwest Ohio

Organization Overview

The Legal Aid Society’s mission is to resolve serious legal problems of low-income people,

promote economic and family stability, and reduce poverty through effective legal assistance. It works

on programs that focus resources on resolving critical issues for clients, while also strategically

addressing broad community concerns. It works with individuals to help clear legal hurdles to

employment, cover kids and families with healthcare benefits, manage multiple tax preparation sites,

provide representation for neighborhood stability issues, and provide comprehensive legal services for

family stability and safety. The Legal Aid Society strongly supports work as a way out of poverty.

Barriers

The Ohio Works First program requirements, developed by the federal government, are the

reason why there are only 15,000 adults currently left in the program, which is 6 percent of the people

that were involved in a similar type of cash assistance program 20 years ago. Due to these changes and

individuals not fulfilling the requirements of 20 hours of work per week or 24 hours of a training

program per month, $1 billion of state and federal funds have not been spent since the mid 90’s on this

particular program.

Recommendations

There are great expectations for the Comprehensive Case Management Program, as it will get

people to focus on people. The money and the focus will give agencies resources to serve specifically

hard-to-serve individuals. TANF and WIOA are unaligned since the federal rules are different for each

one. The availability of new funding alone does not solve the issues of poverty; the issue is not who

should do this work, but rather who can do it successfully. Although all the new changes will help better

serve our hardest-to-reach populations, the original funding model of Ohio Works First should be

restored.

Phil DeVol – Bridges Out of Poverty

Organization Overview

Reducing the social costs of poverty, strengthening the workforce, and building a more

prosperous and sustainable community are goals on which most communities agree. The Bridges Out of

Poverty community support program provides a family of concepts, workshops, and products to help

employers, community organizations, social service agencies, and individuals address and reduce

poverty in a comprehensive way. Bridges brings people from all sectors and economic classes together

to improve job-retention rates, build resources, improve outcomes, and support those who are moving

out of poverty.

The new Comprehensive Case Management model and the Healthier Buckeye Councils are two

government innovations that will allow communities, nonprofits and government to come together to

help individuals in poverty.

Barriers

There are so many people who are working hard, some working more than one job - and they hit

a brick wall. When an individual seeks help and goes to a nonprofit or government agency, the

30

individual understands those organizations as being able to help. If the agency fails, the promise is

broken, therefore continuing the instability with an added layer of distrust. It is difficult to make

individual change and a personal commitment to changing the way you think about things. A support

system is necessary, and what an agency thinks about individuals that live in poverty reflects the way

agencies work with individuals in poverty; negative thought about individuals in poverty will be reflected

in the programs.

Recommendations

A common language and understanding of poverty is needed to overcome the different mental

models of the policy maker, agency worker, community worker and individual in poverty. All partners

and catalysts must be engaged to have significant buy-in for a shared vision of change. A shared data

collection system and evaluation system is needed to measure success and share information. There

must be a commitment to long-term funding. A learning community must be developed at the most

local level to build stability. The intention to impact policy must be lead from the grassroots. All policy

should review if it will stabilize or destabilize the bottom rung of the ladder. Stability allows individuals

to build resources and provide pathways. An important factor in reducing poverty is to build social

capital and connect people across class lines that bring communities together and build stability at the

most local level.

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Community and Family Advancement

Summer Committee

Findings and Recommendations

32

1) Make government funding flexible to meet the unique needs of each individual with varying

barriers to employment. The “benefits cliff” forces nonprofits and people in poverty to prefer

keeping a low wage instead of accepting an increase in pay. Job training programs that require

unpaid internships or clinical experience force nonprofits and people in poverty to prefer

training for jobs that do not pay significantly higher wages. Workforce training programs are

encouraged to accept only individuals in poverty with few barriers because funding does not

cover post-program completion case managers for follow-ups, which is a significant need for job

retention. Collaborative holistic programs are forced to contract for only single services,

therefore referring clients to other programs they rarely make it to. “Pay for Success” funding is

flexible and able to solve local problems with local investments.

2) Encourage service providers and government agencies to share resources and services, and to

collaborate, in many cases creating a single-location solution. The “culture of referral”

disincentives progress while simultaneously adding more barriers (ex: time, transportation,

feeling shame by retelling stories). Referring someone to another service means that individual

may need to take another day off work, rely on a family or friend to take care of their child

another time, and make that individual pay additional money for transportation. Also, many

organizations in Ohio are top-notch institutions, excelling at their specific missions, but are

unable to address every need an impoverished individual may have. Many issues that arise

while an individual is striving to get out of poverty often need immediate and specific attention

by an organization expert in a particular service area. For example, a workforce training

program may need an addiction treatment specialist on site, and an employer hiring individuals

from generational poverty may need a clinical counselor or social worker on site.

3) Understand that people in poverty have a unique sense of values, often well suited to identify

their needs, propose solutions, and troubleshoot together to climb out of poverty. People in

poverty are excellent problem solvers, especially of their own immediate needs. Engaging

residents of low-income neighborhoods is the only way to find a sustainable solution to the

issue of poverty. Specific neighborhoods become a sub-culture in their city, allowing for

resident input to lead to effective solutions to poverty. More simply put, solutions need to

come from the grassroots - individuals that know the area best – not from the government

down.

4) Develop creative solutions to work around transportation limitations. Business development

in low-income neighborhoods can create opportunities for individuals to find jobs while avoiding

the burdensome cost, both time and money, of transportation. Public transportation is

unreliable, more expensive per trip, and less safe for families with young children. Some

predatory organizations can further burden an individual in poverty by requiring additional

transportation needs. For example, when a nonprofit promotes a service yet only refers the

individual to another organization, the person in poverty is discouraged since in the short-term

it will often cost them significantly more in time and money than it will cost by not receiving the

service in the long term. Therefore, it is important for government funding to discourage

referrals by limiting funding to organizations that promote services and subcontract, as well as

encouraging organizations to locate their services in low-income neighborhoods.

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5) Create opportunities for social integration of economic differences to foster an environment

where people fundamentally understand each other and can work together toward solutions.

Social capital is very important in the short and long term for low-income individuals. Social

networks are not only a way to solve immediate needs but are also a way to keep from falling

deeper into poverty. Healthy, long term social networks can help someone get a job, catch

them when they fall, and help break down stereotypes, racism, and a socioeconomic “us vs

them” mentality. For example, individuals with relationships in middle- and high-socioeconomic

circles do not need a jobs program as they have networks to refer them to jobs.

6) Overcome the contempt and mistrust of government. If someone is in poverty because of an

abusive relationship, telling a government caseworker may risk their benefits (ex: some benefits

to single mothers require no men to be in the household). Telling a nonprofit caseworker of

abuse can help get to the root of the problem, allowing for additional services to actually fix the

issue. When the government says it can help, yet only sends a card in the mail with enough

money on it for a week of food, there is a sense of being let down as the situation of poverty has

not changed. Often people who make the rules for government benefits have different mental

models of the world. Therefore, the rules to the benefits do not make sense to an individual in

poverty.

7) Develop a common language to communicate – addressing attitudes, stigmas, ethnic and

economic differences. Create a common language with specific definitions understood by

people in poverty and decision makers to allow communities to build stability and develop

resources by engaging people from all classes, races, sectors and political persuasions as co-

creators in the decision-making process. Accurate information about people in poverty, as well

as the causes of poverty, makes it possible to build comprehensive solutions.

8) Find solutions to reduce the costs of programs and systems that don’t work. These failures

can be seen in the following scenarios: When an emergency room is used for primary care

rather than preventative medicine. People in poverty often opt to remain at a low-wage job for

fear that increased pay would make them ineligible for benefits upon which they have grown

accustomed. Poor primary education sets up need for remedial training. Conglomerated public

housing cuts off individuals in poverty from human and social capital that can help them get a

first job and advance in their careers. Some government-sponsored workforce development

programs train for jobs that are only able to be filled by union trained people.

9) Address the significant and actual costs for job training, personal development and climbing

out of poverty since it costs more to be poor than it does to have money. People in poverty

are always in immediate need because they do not have the money to invest in future rewards.

The constant concern of immediate problems, called the tyranny of the moment, does not allow

an individual to have abstract thought into how to solve an issue long term. For example, public

transportation costs more time and money per trip than owning a car; owning a used car often

requires more expenses than a new car; not having enough credit to qualify for a loan to buy a

decent car means you must purchase a car from a car lot with high risk lenders with significantly

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higher interest rates; cheap clothes cost more in the long term since they wear out faster and

requiring continual purchasing; renting costs more per square foot than owning a home, and the

payments have no future value; utility companies require down payments for individuals with

no or low credit; court fees cannot be lowered or excused without a lawyer.

10) Help address poor health, and the unique causes to poor health, created by poverty. Old

carpet can cause individuals, especially children, to develop sicknesses, causing them to miss

school or work. Constant struggling to find short-term solutions creates high-stress

environments and leads to children lashing out in school and a higher percentage of divorce for

adults. “Food deserts,” a low income area with no grocery store, have limited access to

nutritional food and a high correlation to obesity and diabetes. This can also have a negative

effect to the usefulness of SNAP benefits, as opposed to the intentional placement of foodbanks

and nonprofit grocery stores that have a higher rate of return on investment, and incentivize

additional human, social and economic capital in the community.

11) Extend the Ohio College Opportunity Grant to workforce and certificate programs at

community colleges for course credit. Technical and community colleges specialize in training

and education that leads to jobs that pay livable wages. Two- and four-year degree institutions

have multiple funding streams and significant investments from local, state and federal

governments. While our colleges are an integral part of our community and economy, our

government grants should be designed to serve our most vulnerable populations swiftly and

efficiently. Local colleges with local students can develop local partnerships with local job

creators and social services for local solutions to poverty.

12) Recognize that people in poverty, as well as nonprofits and government agencies addressing

their needs, are unique and provide unique solutions, not one size fits all. Some people are in

poverty for one or two reasons, and some are there for a multitude of reasons. Some programs

are designed to deal with people who have one or two barriers to success, and some are

designed to handle multiple barriers. Local social service organizations are necessary to define

and deal with local problems. The transition out of poverty is difficult and unstable, requiring

tailored solutions with a varying array of supports.

13) Poverty is caused by four principles:

1) Lack of human and social capital in the community. This is necessary to hope for the

future, remove barriers to success, find a job, maintain a job and climb the ladder to a

livable wage.

2) Exploitation. Any organization offering goods and services to individuals in poverty must be

constantly aware of unintended consequences and situations that could result in the

exploitation of these individuals.

3) Political and economic structures without view of poverty’s needs. Some policies and

structures do not consider the effects of decisions and systems on the lower rung of the

economy, or that put individuals with little income or cultural differences at a disadvantage

by creating additional barriers to one’s ability to climb out of poverty, crushing hope and

costing the government more.

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4) Behavioral issues. Decisions that do not follow the rules of mainstream society lead to job

loss, addiction, criminal activity and generational poverty.