OZARK OPPORTUNITIES, INC.
701 E. PROSPECT P.O. BOX 1400 HARRISON, ARKANSAS 72602 (870) 741-9406 FAX: (870) 741-0924
This agency is in compliance with Titles VI and VII Civil Rights Act “Equal Opportunity Employer”
www.ozarkopp.org
Agency Progress Report Report for March 2018 Board of Directors and Stakeholders
I. Chief Executive Officer Update:
Agency Finances are (still) going well. We have no issues with making payments to vendors on
time, and cash flow is not limited due to access to funds.
We have received all regular funding from all sources EXCEPT Emergency Solutions Grant
reimbursements of approximately $1,500.
Most of the Early Head Start Startup funds have been spent, and the EHS locations are looking
great. We will have a final total of funds left over in the coming month.
II. Child Development (ABC Pre-K, HS & EHS)
A. Arkansas Better Chance Pre-K Program:
Enrollment: We now have 50 Arkansas Better Chance Pre-K slots available; 32 in Baxter
County, and 18 in Boone County, and they are fully enrolled.
Attendance: ABC Monthly Avg.= 74.05%. The ABC Program requires 80% Average Daily
Attendance; however, there are excused absences for sickness, so we are good.
OOI Finance Stoplight; Green= ALL GOOD!
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B. Head Start & Early Head Start:
a. Sharon Burnett- Health and Nutrition:
Nutrition:
Below is the amount of Breakfast, Lunches, and Snacks that were served to the
children and the total amount that our program was reimbursed for the cost of
food.
CACFP CLAIM SUMMARY Head Start; February 2018
Breakfast= 3554 Lunch= 3652 Snacks= 3167
Total $22,567.97
Early Head Start PROGRAM; February 2018
Breakfast= 711 Lunch= 729 Snacks= 635
Total $ 3,744.19
ABC PROGRAM; February 2018
Breakfast= 662 Lunch= 710 Snacks= 655
Total $ 3,540.91
Total for all programs combined $29,853.07
Health- HS:
98% of students have completed Dental Exams
98% of students have completed Lead Testing
97.6% of students have completed Physical Exams
98% of students have completed immunizations, 1.5% have a waiver
(4 children)
Health- EHS:
92% of students have completed Dental Exams
100% of students have completed Lead Testing
98% of students have completed Well Child Check ups
96% of students have completed immunizations, 1 has applied for a
waiver
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b. Tawnya Akins: Mental Health, Licensing, Safety, and Facilities:
Construction is underway in Marshall at the Early Head Start Training
Center. Completion is expected by the end of March.
The Valley Springs playground has been updated.
We are currently getting quotes for new flooring at some Head Start
locations.
Mental Health observations have been completed and will be reviewed
with the teaching staff in March/April.
I attended several meetings with parents concerning their children’s
behaviors in the past month.
c. Terri Beard- ERSEA & Family and Community Partnerships:
ENROLLMENT UPDATE: At the end of February we had 261 Head
Start children enrolled and 48 Early Head Start Children for a total of 309.
We are fully enrolled.
HS/EHS ATTENDANCE UPDATE: We are at 82.78% Average Daily
Attendance (“ADA”) in Head Start Pre-K & 84.48% ADA in Early Head
Start, so we are within the regulations for both programs (85% minimum.)
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Head Start Attendance:
Early Head Start Attendance:
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d. Ryan Clayborn- Program Manager/ Education Coordinator:
Teachers are completing home visits and will be finished by mid-March.
The second round of Developmental Assessments have been completed and we
had a School Readiness/HSAC meeting on March 13th.
Data from the first and second rounds of Teaching Strategies Gold observations
has been compiled and analyzed to present to Policy Council.
CLASS observations are underway and will be completed by March 15, 2018.
The Boone County Imagination Library met at OOI in Harrison on February 6.
We are currently providing books 1,068 children in Boone County. There have
been 647 children graduate the program.
Received all EHS, ABC, and HS Lesson Plans, Home Visit Sign-Ins and Parent
Conference Sign-Ins.
All of the Coordinators have been busy ordering supplies & materials for EHS
with the carryover startup funds.
I created the February Early Childhood Newsletter that highlighted staff
member, Kathy Weaver, for her dedication and work ethic the past two years-
GO KATHY!!!
e. Patricia Murray- Disabilities & Center Supervisor:
Thirty-nine (39) children are receiving services including 20 children
received Speech services and 19 children receiving Developmental
services. This is 15% of our students.
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f. Krystal Mayes: Parent Engagement
“SLIME TIME” AND MAKING “DINOSOUR FOSSILS”
III. Community Services Rebecca Hanlin; Community Services Manager
a. Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program:
The Winter non-emergency program will begin on January 16 and run through March
31, 2018 or until funds are depleted.
The crisis (emergency) Winter program will begin on February 12 and run until funds
are depleted or until the State closes the program.
Utility assistance checks are written weekly, on Wednesday. Through 3/7/2018 we’ve
written checks on 2,170 non-emergency applications the amount of $274,254 and 100
emergency applications in the amount of $22,173.10.
Monitors are scheduled to review Winter HEAP records March 13-15, 2018.
The following charts express data that has been collected since the beginning of the
program, through March 2nd:
NON-EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE
Counties Received Approved $ Pending Denied
Baxter 565 505 $63,532.00 3 57
Boone 708 626 $77,956.00 28 54
Marion 336 295 $37,569.00 1 40
Newton 258 232 $29,145.00 2 24
Searcy 243 227 $28,954.00 2 14
Van Buren 333 312 $39,731.00 1 20
Total 2,443 2,197 $276,887.00 37 209
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b. Vehicle Repair Loan Program:
Current balance is now $5,180.99; Current funds loaned out is $1,341.69.
$500 maximum loan amount. Loan must be repaid within one year.
Income eligibility is 200% federal poverty level.
From start of program we’ve had 8 individuals receive a loan, three are paid in full;
four are in the repayment process; one is delinquent.
We are currently working with Community Partners to spread the word about this
program. Partners must be willing to sign a referral letter and help with contacting
approved clients if they default on the loan.
c. Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG):
Program implemented December 8, 2017.
Baxter, Boone, Marion and Newton counties grant application: $14,000 (Rapid
Rehousing: $6,000 and Homeless Prevention: $8,000).
Searcy and Van Buren counties grant application: $7,000 (Rapid Rehousing: $2,000
and Homeless Prevention: $5,000).
The program was put on hold on February 5, 2018, until reimbursement from the State
occurred.
ESG Activity through January 31, 2018- we have assisted 10 Families (28 Individuals).
County Rapid Rehousing Homelessness
Prevention Match Total
Baxter $0.00 $1,357.50 $1,357.50 $2,715.00
Boone $1,141.00 $445.00 $1,586.00 $3,172.00
Marion $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Newton $560.00 $0.00 $560.00 $1,120.00
Searcy $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Van Buren $0.00 $1,337.50 $1,337.50 $2,675.00
Total $1,701.00 $3,140.00 $4,841.00 $9,682.00
EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE
Counties Received Approved $ Pending Denied
Baxter 37 32 $7,415.18 2 3
Boone 41 27 $5,537.04 3 11
Marion 19 19 $4,591.69 0 0
Newton 20 16 $2,710.16 2 2
Searcy 10 9 $2,158.55 0 1
Van Buren 26 23 $5,757.73 1 2
Total 153 126 $28,170.35 8 19
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d. Community Services Block Grant (CSBG):
A CSBG Discretionary Funds Proposal was submitted (1/9/2018) for FY 2018
program year. The proposal is for Emergency and Stability Assistance to help with
medical, dental, optical and housing needs; similar to last year.
March 30th is the end of the second quarter, that report will be due the end of April.
In April we’ll be attending training meetings in preparation of the FY 2019 CSBG
Grant Application.
e. Agency Capacity/ Resource Development:
Researching grant opportunities for homelessness initiatives, dental services,
childhood literacy, youth music outreach and general family stabilization through
emergency services.
Lead agency of Boone, Baxter, Marion, Newton Continuum of Care (BBMN CoC).
Next meeting to be held on 3/8/2018 in Harrison, OOI conference room. Harley
Thompson has been working with a HUD Technical Assistance provider on
development of a required Coordinated Assessment process for assisting homeless
persons through the CoC. This has been through a series of conference calls held on
1/19, 2/9, 2/16, and 3/2.
Interviews have been conducted for two Outreach Worker positions, Baxter/Marion
and Boone/Newton. We hope to have those positions filled by the end of March.
Activity Overview for Potential Funding Opportunities:
Focus
Funding
Amount
Grant
Guidance Activity Result
Community
Improvement
$500 -
$1,500
Met Submitted app 2/14/18 for support
of homeless initiatives.
Awaiting Response
Dental Health $1,000 Met Toured Rotary Dental Clinic and
met to assess needs. Preparing
grant app for 3/15/18 deadline.
Community Health
& Human Services -
Crisis Support
$25,000
and up
Met Submitted 8/11/2016 Awaiting Response. Have not
been contacted and no
recipient list published yet.
Continuum of Care
Planning
$6,980 Met Submitted 9/28/2017 APPROVED!! – Awaiting
grant agreement and
procedures for processing
expenditures.
Foundation Grant -
Low Income
Initiatives &
Solutions
$5,000 Met Submitted 1/30/2018 Awaiting Response.
Submitted for micro-shelter
materials funding.
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f. Family Development & Empowerment:
As of March 1st we have 28 families enrolled in SUCCESS. Of those nine are eligible
for A-16 activities under the new “recommendations” from the State. The breakdown
by county is 23 (Boone), 2 (Baxter), 2 (Searcy), 1 (Newton). We will continue
recruitment in all 6 counties.
The March seminar on the 8th will have a guest speaker, Trudy McManus (UA
Extension). She will cover nutrition basics: reading labels for nutritional value and
bang for your buck; food sugar shockers; my plate, and food hazards. March seminars
will be on the 8th at 5:30 pm and the 24th at 10:00 am at the Community Services Building
in Harrison. An additional seminar may be set for other locations if attendance
permits.
The April seminar will go more in depth into the nutrition topics from the previous
month along with a possible food demonstration. As of now the seminar is scheduled
for April 12th at 5:30 pm and April 21stat 10:00 am. These seminars are scheduled to be held
at the Community Services Building in Harrison. More dates will be set as the
enrollment in each county increases.
Last month we highlighted Jane Smith’s story through her involvement with our
SUCCESS program this month we wanted to share a follow-up.
As you may recall in our previous story, Jane was one of our first Emergency
Solutions Grant (ESG) recipients. She came to us straight out of drug rehab. facing
eviction from her home. Fast-forward one year and she has remained drug and alcohol
free(!), is employed, has her driver’s license back and has her own vehicle. One of her
greatest regrets was losing her family because of her addiction, as Jane has adult
children that she has not had contact with until recently. She was happy to announce in
last month’s seminar that she has a new grandchild, and has begun rebuilding the
relationship with her son and his children. Although Jane still doesn’t have a
relationship with her daughter, it is her hope that she will be able to mend that fence as
well, in addition to other family members that were hurt by Jane’s addictions. The
healing has begun, and Jane is hopeful that by building these bonds it will positively
influence her daughter’s opinion and open the door to re-establishing a healthy
relationship.
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g. Community Engagement & Staff Development:
Blaine Lawrence and Rebecca Hanlin are undergoing training to become a Nationally
Certified ROMA Implementers. They are scheduled to be in North Little Rock March
20th to complete the second phase of this training. Ms. Hanlin and Mr. Atkinson are
renewing their “Nationally Certified ROMA Trainer” or NCRT credential as well.
Community Services leadership staff are currently working on a Best Practices
Manual for all programs implemented within the Community Services Department.
Progress on the new location for the Boone County Community Services Outreach
Office is going well. Everything seems on track for staff to start moving the week of
March 26th. The new address is: 1856 Church Park Drive Suite 2 & 3 in Harrison.
It is just down the street from our current location.
Representatives from all OOI departments worked on the 2017 Annual Report; a draft
has been submitted to the CEO for review and will be presented to the Board at the
next Exec. Committee Meeting.
2/16/2018 – Harley met with Mr. Gerald Matheson, representing a local ministerial
alliance.
2/23/2018 – Harley attended a meeting of Arkansas Coalition of Housing &
Neighborhood Growth for Empowerment (ACHANGE) in Little Rock.
2/27/2018 – Harley attended a ministerial alliance meeting at Church 180 in Harrison
and spoke about OOI and its programs.
3/8/2018 – Cathy met with Judy Nickens with Goodwill. Cathy looks forward to
building a strong partnership with them.
3/9/2018 – Harley attended a Continuum of Care meeting for Northwest Arkansas in
Springdale.
3/23/2018 – Time Management Training through SkillPath was available for staff to
attend at the administrative office from 1-2:00 pm.
3/28/2018 – Harley and Rebecca will conduct a ROMA Refresher Training for staff in
preparation of the second quarter report.
3/30/2018 – Harley will attend Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) meeting in North
Little Rock regarding the FY 2018/19 program year funding opportunity.
IV. Corporate Services (& Human Resources) Jane Bueg, Chief Operating Officer
February 2018
Hires Education Community Services Administration Total
2 2 0 0 2
All Departures Education Community Services Administration Total
1 0 1 0 1
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Other/Training:
GoogleApps in-kind report: $285.00 (Head Start) $170.00 (Early Head Start)
$50.00 (ABC)
Contractor List Update Child Maltreatment Registry Checks –staff
Criminal Background Checks –staff
Termination of Benefits: 1
COBRA Notice: 1
Dept. of Labor Survey for January (Van Buren County statistics)
Technology: inventory, trouble shooting, problem solving,
Tech Talk
Posting, Advertise Vacancies - 1
Workers Comp: 1
Governance meetings: Policy Council, Board of Directors
Policy Revisions: Annual Leave Policy
EEO-300 A report & staff board updates: Jasper HS, Harrison ABC, Harrison
EHS
Interviews scheduled: 2/5/18, 2/8/18, 2/13/18, 2/21/18, 3/7/18, 3/8/18
Workers Comp Audit w/finance
Training webinars: Mastering the Art of Coaching & Teambuilding; The
Brave New World of I-9 and E-Verify Compliance; How to Effectively
Supervise Off-site Employees
Reference Checks: 4
Renew Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification
Orientation: 2
Staff Status change to exempt: 24