Transitional Housing of Pittsburgh, a non-profit social service agency for the greater Pittsburgh region, is a start up not for profit. Amy Rand, who is both a professional and has the education required to run the organization, was the founder. Amy is currently forming a strong Board of Trustees to make the organization more valuable.
Services
Transitional Housing of Pittsburgh offers transitional housing and life skills training for women. The organization provides support to often homeless women as they move out of abusive, dependent relationships and into independent, self-sufficient living arrangements. It helps clients with child reunification. This is important since 80% clients have children, but no custody.
This is the only city-wide women-only facility. It also has long-term transitional housing. Transitional Housing is able to offer housing for up two years, while all other shelters offer just 30 days of housing. The staff includes a counselor in chemical dependency, an AIDS counselor and a family reunification counsellor to help clients.
The facility provides clients within an eight-step program that teaches them necessary life skills. The key to self-sufficiency is achieved through a collaborative empowerment approach. The steps include personal and vocational development, substance abuse counseling, interpersonal skill building, community involvement, leisure activities, independent living skills, and individual development.
Market
Transitional Housing has identified two distinct segments of customers according to their age. These are those below 30 and those 30 and older. This distinction is important due to the high percentage clients with children, while those in younger segments have significantly fewer children. The 30-and-over age group is growing at 8%, while the age group below 30 is growing at 9.9% per year. Each group has 165.454 potential clients and 155.745 clients. The majority of clients come to Transitional Housing from lower socioeconomic communities. Although it can be difficult communicating with these groups, Transitional Housing would offer them many profound benefits.
Management
Amy Rand is the executive director and the driving force behind this organization. Amy holds a B.S. Amy has a Bachelor of Science in Sociology degree from Case Western Reserve University as well as a Master of Non-Profit Business Management from the University of Pittsburgh. Additionally, she is a veteran in the management of social service projects. Amy, who was program manager at Pennsylvania’s largest provider of domestic abuse assistance services, developed a proactive empowerment plan that became the foundation for Transitional Housing’s collaborative approach. Amy’s tenure as program manager has seen her build a network of professional and personal connections with key community leaders. This will not only help raise the profile of Transitional Housing, but also have a major impact on fundraising activities.
1.1 Mission
Transitional Housing’s mission is to provide women of Pittsburgh a safe transitional housing alternative, teach a multitude of skills to empower the women to self-sufficiency, and facilitate the possible reunification of clients with their children.
Success Keys 1.2
- Build a strong, active Board of Trustees.
- Ensure that the offered services satisfy market needs.
- Design and implement strict financial controls and accountability.
1.3 Objectives
- You will need to secure enough funding for both startup and operation.
- Establish a women’s-only transitional housing center that provides housing and a range of empowering skills.
- Develop a strong Board of Trustees that can offer guidance, help with fundraising efforts, and oversee the smooth operation of the organization.
