Message from our Chief Executive Officer - Kevin Priest

During times of economic strife, non-profit organizations are usually the first to feel the effects. It is particularly true when a non-profit organization has cultivated a wide base of low to mid-level donors. Funding problems start to become more prevalent, as donors can't afford to give as much as they used to or they are forced to be prudent with the number of organizations they support. A good example is when donors are forced to spend the same amount of money for a gallon of gasoline that they would usually donate to feed a meal or two to a youth in care. Everyone is feeling the crunch and Arnette House, Inc. is no different. However, given the network of loyal donors that back Arnette House and the diversity in funding that Arnette House receives to provide a variety of youth and family services to the community, we continue to be thankful for the strong financial health that has allowed our agency to prosper. Amid the threats of funding cuts from the state's legislature, our mission drives us to provide the best level of service to as many clients as possible. Even though our mission will certainly be tested for the next few years to come, this past year was not reflective of those challenges.

2007 was a good year for Arnette House, Inc. With the refunding of our Basic Center Grant from the federal government, the growing relationship with Kids Central, Inc., and the development of Coalition for Youth, Inc. to provide independent living housing for youth ages 18-21, Arnette House has expanded the level of services that are available for our community. For fiscal year 2006-2007, 876 youth received services from our residential, counseling, or transitional and independent living programs. Of this number, (87%) of the youth were prevented from entering into the juvenile justice system. Arnette House just serves as another example of how prevention works.

The Arnette House provides services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our long term goals and vision is:

• To continually expand and improve our continuum of care
• To offer services based on community need
• To increase public awareness of available services in the community
• To increase community participation in prevention programs
• To make the community a safer place to live

Our hope for the youth and families we serve:

• Increased self-reliance and coping skills
• The ability to manage behavior with its natural and logical consequences
• Building stronger relationships within the family as well as others
• To make the community a safer place to live

Finally, Arnette House holds a firm belief that we could never do this alone. We are constantly seeking ways to improve our relationships and partnerships in the community, so we can better serve the people within our community. We have already initiated a few model ideas that will take our organization to exciting new heights, including a collaborative effort with the Silver River Marine Institute, to provide additional transitional living and independent living programs for the youth in the community. All of these ideas go to support our primary mission, which is to protect the public by preventing junvenile delinquency and child abuse through the strengthening of youth and families in our community.

Continuous Quality Improvement Notice

Arnette House, Inc. is committed to a Continuous Quality Improvement Program that develops, enhances, monitors, and maintains the highest possible provision of quality services to all people served by the organization. This Quality Improvement Plan provides the system for monitoring and improving the quality and appropriateness of agency and individual client services.

The Quality Improvement Program is structured to facilitate the input for line staff, managers, consumers of the organization's services, and others to proactively improve programs, enhance services, and stimulate creativity, problem solving, and promote teamwork. This structure leads to improved quality, higher productivity, reduced costs, increased levels of consumer satisfaction, and improve the quality of life of persons served.

Prior to 2005, Arnette House informally practiced a quality improvement approach of developing a Quality Improvement Initiatives Plan for each year. With the commitment to become accredited, a formal Continuous Quality Improvement Plan was written and approved by management and the Board of Directors. Implementation of the plan beginning shortly afterwards and continues as processes are refined. The full CQI committee met for the first time in September with the initial meetings of the CQI subcommittees following in October.

A good deal of time, energy, and resources to develop the fundamentals, infrastructure and most importantly, for training and inclusion of agency staff for buy-in and participation in our quality improvement processes have been expended. Although these processes have been implemented, they are far from perfect. We can say, however, that the focus on quality and the CQI systems we have put in place to this date have made Arnette House a more organized, quality-focused, and business-like agency and that those we serve have benefited.

Arnette House Financial Picture

The majority of our money comes from Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) and Department of Children and Families (DCF) programs. Arnette House has held strong long-term relationships with these entities as well as with The City of Ocala (CDBG), The Department of Health and Human Services (Federal Basic Center Grant), private individuals, and United Way of Marion County. The following chart illustrates our sources of income in fiscal year 2004-2005:

Our focus for revenue income is to remain on a track that provides for the continuation of current service levels, meeting our client needs, and improving operations and services.

The following chart illustrates Arnette House expenditures in fiscal year 2004-2005:

Where does the money go?
Money received by Arnette House is used to support the youth and families in the communities it serves.

Residential
More than half of our funds support the emergency youth shelter. We are licensed to care for 24 residential clients at a time who are in crisis and need our support.

Non-Residential – Marion
In the past we had relied on the customers to come to us – unfortunately transportation proved to be a hindrance. To better meet those needs, our counselors are now providing services by going into area elementary and middle schools to serve children and their families.

Non-Residential – Lake
This year was the second year of a three year delinquency prevention grant to support the families in Lake County. Services are provided from Leesburg to Clermont, Eustis, Tavares, Mount Dora, Lady Lake, and The Villages.

Outreach & Prevention
We have partnered with local school boards and other local agencies to increase awareness of services available to youth and their families.

Transitional Living
In May the Vernon Arnette Learning Center opened its doors to serve youth 16 to 20 years of age. Clients in the Transitional Living Program live on our campus while they learn the life skills necessary to become self-sufficient.

Independent Living – 14th Street Apartments
The 28 bed apartment complex offers Independent Living services to youth ages 18-21. The apartments opened in February 2008 and is home to many young adults that have the opportunity to mature independently, yet still have some guidance in life skills.

Administration
Administration is extremely conscientious about the way money is spent. It is our goal to ensure that every penny we make is used to provide the best services available in the communities we serve. Costs were higher this year due to the construction of the new Vernon Arnette Learning Center. Private and local contributions made the construction possible.

For more information about our financial picture, please contact Diana Sanchez, Chief Financial Officer.