Strategic Plan

Summary

The Toledo Lucas County Homelessness Board (TLCHB) is grateful for the opportunity to come together with our partners on an important strategic planning initiative to support our community’s response to homelessness.  

Our 2021-2022 Strategic Planning Initiative will help us to redesign and improve the care provided to those experiencing poverty in our community. Through diligent research, engagement, and strategic planning, and by adopting evidence-based best practice models, we expect a paradigm shift to our current service delivery model. We are confident in the value this initiative will offer to the broader continuum of services here locally, thereby improving the resources and supports available to those in need. 

Statement of Need

The evolving nature of best practices and available resources over the years begs us as a community to be smarter in how we address issues related to poverty and homelessness.  Further, cultural shifts and economic changes have painted a new reality for those living in poverty today. We can no longer afford to build a “system” piece by piece, in response to ad hoc needs and resources—we must be more intentional in deciding on a future desired state and developing a strategy to achieve that state. 

Our Continuum has not developed a comprehensive plan for response in over thirteen years.  Through an initial Exploration and Interest Assessment, the TLCHB found that over 87% of Continuum of Care participants agreed that we need a better plan moving into the future—one that factors into account informed data on the reality of our community, and one that is pragmatic in using and maximizing available resources.  Over 15 local agencies (including direct service providers, ancillary service providers, and community stakeholders) have committed to participating in a planning effort to ensure our community moves forward in alignment. 

Plan for Initiative 

The TLCHB is currently engaged in a staged process to assist in the development of a larger community strategic plan:

• Stage 1: Exploration & Interest Assessment: Note: This stage is now complete

• Stage 2: Community Gaps Analysis and Asset Mapping. This stage is in progress.

A research team from Lourdes University will guide a community wide “gaps analysis” to provide objective data that will help identify the range of services in Lucas County through community resource mapping and explanatory support.  Insight into a community’s existing partnerships and programs, resource allocations and policies, and priorities and assets will contribute to its ability to evaluate overall service effectiveness. When combined with participatory, descriptive and explanatory data, mapping will inform a comprehensive picture of a community’s vision, goals, projects, and infrastructure.

This stage will collect information from individuals and systems (recipients of services and stakeholders, Directors, middle management, direct staff) through focus groups, interviews, and surveys. The effort will seek to understand people’s values, judgments, opinions, and observations based on personal perceptions and experiences interacting with people who experience homelessness and collaborating with other service providers. Data from qualitative and quantitative sources will be compiled and analyzed into a useful report to guide Stage 3. 

• Stage 3: Development of Vision and Strategic Plan

Using the data collection, community resource map, and recommendations of Stage 2 team, the Toledo Lucas County Homelessness Board will engage local and national consultants to facilitate the following tasks:

• Engage stakeholders at all levels of service delivery (inclusive of current clients and those with lived experience) in focus groups, interviews, and surveys

• Identify a shared vision for the future of TLC’s Continuum of Care and TLCHB’s role in shepherding that vision 

• Develop and adopt a written Continuum of Care Strategic Plan, inclusive of priorities, action steps, and accountability measures 

• Timeline: 12-18 months, depending on funding and COVID developments