Spiritual Training Program

Program Mission Statement:

(self-reported)

Goal is to improve homeless people through our programs in one year, moving them towards higher levels of functioning and stability as measured across five categories: 1) housing, 2) employment, 3) income, 4) recovery (drug/alcohol), 5) spirituality in order that they leave as functioning / contributing members of the larger community.

Score Summary

Overall Score:	Excellent
Practice Principles:	Better
Faith Related Elements:	Excellent
Outcome Measures:	Excellent
Change Process:	Excellent

Program Facts

• Paid (FTE) Staff Working: 6
• Program Participants Last Year: 181
• Meets about 120 time(s) with each participant per month
• Participants remain in the program for 12 months

Board Activities

Funding Overview

(self-reported)

	This Program	This Organization
Organization Budget: $386,760 Program Budget: $329,704
Foundation Grants	3%	3%
Government Grants/Contracts	0%	0%
Individual Gifts	76%	76%
Business/Corporate Gifts	11%	11%
Congregation/Denominational Gifts	9%	9%
Dues/Fees/Income	0%	0%
Other	1%	1%
	Average Program Funding From All Samaritan Programs	Average Organization Funding From All Samaritan Organizations
The next charts display the average funding sources for all programs currently in the Samaritan Guide for your comparison. Average Organization Budget: $3,817,897 Average Program Budget: $349,880
Foundation Grants	24%	18%
Government Grants/Contracts	2%	8%
Individual Gifts	32%	33%
Business/Corporate Gifts	7%	8%
Congregation/Denominational Gifts	11%	10%
Dues/Fees/Income	7%	9%
Other	11%	11%

It is important to maintain diverse income sources for your programs and for your oganization as a whole. Doing so provides long-term financial stability to your organizations and programs. It is also important to note that government funding often comes with stipulations and restrictions. More information is available in the Raising Resources Toolkit - pdf.

Score Details

Program Focus
Program Mission	Clarity and specificity of the program's mission statement.	Good
Target Population	Clarity and specificity of the programs target clientele.	Good
Eligibility Criteria	Clarity and specificity of the program's eligibility criteria.	Excellent
Program Requirements	Well defined requirements for client participation.	Excellent
Referrals From Other Organizations	Do other organizations recommend this program to their clientele.	Excellent
Referrals to Other Organizations	Does this program recommend other programs to their clients?	Better
Volunteer to Staff Ratio	Are volunteers effectively incorporated into the program?	Good
Past Participant Recruiting	Are past program participants recruited as volunteers?	Excellent
Evaluation and Practice Princples
Practice Principles	How supports and resources are provided to increase outcomes.	Better
Outcome Measurement	The ability to measure stated program outcomes.	Excellent
Change Process	Specific and measurable statement of the program's goals.	Excellent
Faith Related Elements	Integration of faith related elements.	Excellent
Measurement Frequency	Frequency of measuring client outcomes.	Excellent
Program Evaluation	Level of the budget allocated to measuring client outcomes.	Good
Institutional Stability
Organization Age	A measure of the organization's durability.	Excellent
Board Oversight	How involved in the program are the members of its board?	Better
Program Duration	Average duration of a clients participation with a program.	Good
Finances
Budget Diffusion	Diversity of the programs funding sources.	Good
Government Funding	Does this program accept little or no government funding?	Excellent

Program Score Details

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Outcomes & Measures:

(self-reported)

Scoring for this section is based on the organizations ability to provide at least three clear and specific outcomes with corresponding measures in which a relationship is shown between outcomes and measures.

Outcome 1: Housing - maintained independently without any subsidy.

Measure Used:
We are utilizing a single instrument for all five of these outcome measures; it is called the HEIRS Assessment Questionnaire. It is a relatively new instrument developed by Dean R. Gartland, Director of Programs, Light of Life Rescue Mission, Inc. (Pittsburgh). It is a straight forward, generally face valid instrument including a point value system generating a score in one of four categories: unstable (no progress) through stable.

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Outcome 2: Employment - full time with benefits.

Measure Used:
We are utilizing a single instrument for all five of these outcome measures; it is called the HEIRS Assessment Questionnaire. It is a relatively new instrument developed by Dean R. Gartland, Director of Programs, Light of Life Rescue Mission, Inc. (Pittsburgh). It is a straight forward, generally face valid instrument including a point value system generating a score in one of four categories: unstable (no progress) through stable.

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Outcome 3: Income - generating net income of $776 per month or greater; add 15 percent for each dependent.

Measure Used:
We are utilizing a single instrument for all five of these outcome measures; it is called the HEIRS Assessment Questionnaire. It is a relatively new instrument developed by Dean R. Gartland, Director of Programs, Light of Life Rescue Mission, Inc. (Pittsburgh). It is a straight forward, generally face valid instrument including a point value system generating a score in one of four categories: unstable (no progress) thru stable.

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Outcome 4: Recovery - actively participating in 12-step recovery program with one year of sobriety.

Measure Used:
We are utilizing a single instrument for all 5 of these outcome measures; it is called the HEIRS Assessment Questionnaire. It is a relatively new instrument developed by Dean R. Gartland, Director of Programs, Light of Life Rescue Mission, Inc. (Pittsburgh). It is a straight forward, generally face valid instrument including a point value system generating a score in one of four categories: unstable (no progress) thru stable.

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Outcome 5: Spirituality - actively involved in Christian growth, fellowship, and discipleship.

Measure Used:
We are utilizing a single instrument for all 5 of these outcome measures; it is called the HEIRS Assessment Questionnaire. It is a relatively new instrument developed by Dean R. Gartland, Director of Programs, Light of Life Rescue Mission, Inc. (Pittsburgh). It is a straight forward, generally face valid instrument including a point value system generating a score in one of four categories: unstable (no progress) thru stable.

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Change Process:

(self-reported)

Scoring for this section is based on the organizations ability to provide clear, measurable, client-focused stages of change based on participant participation.

The Spiritual Training Program (STP) is a long-term, faith-based, non-denominational, residential substance abuse program for homeless men, women, and women with children. The program consists of three phases following an initial orientation/evaluation period (7 to 14 days) as follows: 1) Phase I Ð six months, 2) Phase II Ð six months, and Phase III Ð independent living with aftercare as needed. Following orientation / evaluation, if the staff and the participant assess that the STP may prove beneficial, she/he is formerly enrolled in Phase I. Phase I concentrates on the participantÕs spiritual growth and usually lasts for six months. Participants are assigned semi-private rooms, required to attend two Bible Studies per day, a daily Chapel Service, meet with the Chaplain weekly for counseling, and meet with a disciple from any Bible-based church. Additionally, each participant is assigned an eight hour per day, six days per week job which assists the Mission in its daily functions and outreach ministry. At the successful completion of Phase I, the participant is honored at a graduation ceremony, and promoted to Phase II. In Phase II, participants continue to reside at the Mission while either searching for full-time career oriented employment or pursuing further job training/education. All earnings by the participant are held in trust by the Mission with the exception of a $40.00 weekly allowance. Once the participant has secured stable employment and accumulated sufficient funds to live independently, the Mission assists in finding adequate housing, pays the deposit and first monthÕs rent, and gives the balance to the participant. Phase III consists of aftercare services, as needed, including counseling, food boxes and meals, clothing, furniture, transportation and other assistance.

End Notes

Incomplete Applications

Significant decreases in certain scores may indicate failure to comprehensively complete certain sections of the Samaritan Award application. Please be sure to fill out every question in the Samaritan Award application.

Relative Scoring

Total program scores are partially computed against other programs from within the same pool of applications and so are not cumulative.

Additional Reference Material

More information on scoring and methodology may be found on the Samaritan Guide and Award website.

Acton Institute Relationship

The Samaritan Guide and Samaritan Award are projects run by the Acton Institute. Inclusion in the Guide does not signify endorsement by the Acton Institute. More information on why the Acton Institute runs this project is available online.