Leah's Hope, Inc

PROJECT PURPOSE

This project will allow us to build a dedicated 14 to 16 unit apartment complex to provide transitional housing for struggling families in the Oklahoma county area. For over 4 years we have provided this service, along with extensive life skills training/education, by using leased apartments, but this severely limits our flexibility to service the most needy families who may have a history that makes them unacceptable to apartment managers but who also have shown the desire to change their lives and their future. We provide the housing, with utilities, for up to one year. We assist the family head with gaining employment and tailor the life skills training to meet individual family needs. We also assist with the development and attainment of family goals. This dedicated facility will allow us to offer a safe and nurturing environment and will also allow us to focus more effectively on performing the Case Management functions that are so necessary for the successful completion of our program. As of this date we are housing and supporting 5 families including 12 children. We have more applicants who could use our services but we are limited by the number of adequate apartments that are made available to us by the owner/operators of the complex.

EVIDENCE

Federal data for the Mid-Del School system for 2019-20 showed that there were 2282 children who were classified as homeless under federal guidelines. Specifically, of these students 26 lived in shelters, 19 were in hotels/motels, and 8 were completely without shelter(staying in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, etc). The remainder of theses students lived with non-parental relatives or with other families, sometimes only for short periods of time, becoming what are often called "couch children". Because of the pandemic there has been no official homeless data collected for 2021, but anecdotal information from the OKC Homeless Alliance indicates a significant negative impact on the homeless from the Covid 19 pandemic.

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

The Mid-Del homeless student data presented above was slightly higher than reported in the previous school year even though the total enrollment was down by approximately 14%. The Covid 19 pandemic is cited as the primary cause for the enrollment reduction. However the fact that more total students were homeless is very indicative of the pandemic's negative impact, not only on enrollment, but also on the housing conditions and opportunities for many families. Due to their compromised immune systems, poor nutrition and hygiene, and overcrowded shelters they are at high risk of contracting contagious diseases. Preventive measures used for the general population --self-isolation, increased hygiene, staying home, social distancing-- are not possible for the homeless. Social and medical services are stretched thin by the pandemic and this has sent more struggling families into the shelters where they are confronted with the very conditions that at-risk persons should avoid, overcrowded unsanitary conditions surrounded by potential Covid victims. As employment opportunities decreased due to the pandemic impacts, those on the lower levels of the employment ladder were the first to lose employment or suffer pay reductions even after some government assistance was interjected, thus joining the ranks of the homeless

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

Project performance will be measured by the development schedule and budget negotiated with the architect and builder. We will initially conduct bi-weekly progress meetings with the architects and builders and when mutually agreed will transition to monthly meetings. Data will primarily be cost and schedule information negotiated in the contract. When required we will conduct problem/schedule mitigation meetings outside of and in addition to the regularly scheduled meetings. We will provide all required program performance data as requested.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

Able to continue operation without additional funding from the State of Oklahoma