Pay for Success loan to help grow Restore’s supportive employment program
For Immediate Release
April 17, 2025
OKLAHOMA CITY —More individuals in northeast Oklahoma City who face barriers to gainful employment will receive assistance in becoming work ready thanks to a recently signed Pay for Success (PFS) contract.
RestoreOKC (Restore) is a nonprofit community development agency dedicated to fostering holistic and sustainable restoration utilizing a place-based strategy. One of the initiatives that they offer is Restore Employment, a supportive employment program that currently offers employment to more than 80 men and women through one of Restore’s social-enterprise businesses.
The 18-month employment program provides pathways to economic stability through marketable skills and certifications for northeast Oklahoma City residents who struggle with poverty, re-entry, or recovery.
This area of Oklahoma City faces significant multi-generational poverty, with more than 65 percent of children under the age of five living in extreme poverty. Residents also experience an 18-year gap in life expectancy compared to the state average.
The employment program focuses on healing as much as it focuses on developing work-readiness skills. The goal is for participants to be able to contribute fully to their family and community while contributing to the overall economic development of the neighborhood.
“Restore Employment began alongside community parents seeking a way to break the cycle of survival so they could be with their kids, enjoy rest, and dream. That vision became reality in 2016 through our first social enterprise and has since grown to inspire four more social enterprises that are creating jobs, stability, and true restoration for families and our neighborhood,” said Caylee Dodson, RestoreOKC Executive Director.
Funding for the expansion of Restore’s employment program is being provided through a PFS contract with Oklahoma Human Services (OHS) and the Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative (the Collaborative), a subsidiary of MetaFund.
Services are initially paid for with private funding from the Collaborative which will be repaid in part or in full using funds allocated to the State’s Pay for Success Innovation Fund if housing, education, and employment outcomes are achieved. State funds only pay for successful results.
"The Collaborative is committed to investing in Oklahoma's workforce," said Ed Long, President and Co-Founder. "We are grateful to RestoreOKC for creating opportunities for our families, friends, and neighbors to flourish. We have become a national leader in Pay for Success financing and are honored to make these investments here in our local communities."
Restore’s employment program is designed for individuals facing severe barriers and includes more than 2,000 staff contact hours. A significant portion of Restore's clients face critical challenges such as homelessness, justice involvement, disabilities, and physical health conditions. These barriers contribute to the complex needs of individuals seeking to overcome economic hardship. All program participants start as unemployed and are identified as low-income or economically disadvantaged.
“Our mission is bigger than benefits, it’s about helping people reclaim hope and stability," said Sondra Shelby, Oklahoma Human Services Adult and Family Services Director. "Together with the Collaborative and RestoreOKC, we are reimagining what’s possible for families experiencing homelessness, and creating a path toward dignity, security, and long-term success.”
The initiative introduces new training opportunities in culinary arts and skilled construction trades, and expanding certifications in urban agriculture, nutrition, and horticulture. These certification programs are complemented with job training, life skills classes, and wraparound case management in compliance with evidence-based practices to help enhance each client’s chances of success.
Restore has been serving northeast Oklahoma City since 2016, addressing interconnected needs in health, education, residences, and employment. In addition to their traditional programming, they have established and operate six social enterprises that benefit those they serve while creating 247 jobs and cumulatively generating about $3.3 million in revenue in the community to date.
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Media Contacts:
Ed Long, Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative President
(405) 922-7580
About Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative
The Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative (Collaborative), a MetaFund initiative, uses philanthropic capital to provide flexible loans and technical assistance to innovative, mission-driven nonprofit and for-profit organizations, with the potential to improve outcomes for Oklahomans. The Collaborative is a national leader in Pay for Success financing.
About MetaFund
MetaFund is an Oklahoma-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit and certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) working with other nonprofits, the private sector, and government toward a just world free of poverty. MetaFund invests in creative solutions for communities, with a primary focus on work, housing, and health. For more information about the Collaborative or MetaFund, visit www.metafund.org.
About RestoreOKC
RestoreOKC is an asset-based community development ministry in Northeast Oklahoma City dedicated to fostering relationships of reconciliation for restoration and justice. Focused on breaking generational cycles of poverty, RestoreOKC invests in workforce development, food access, housing equity, and education to create sustainable solutions for long-term community transformation. Learn more at restoreokc.org.
About Oklahoma Human Services
Oklahoma Human Services offers help and hope to more than one million Oklahomans each year through a wide range of services and support that promote their safety, independence and wellbeing. Learn more at https://oklahoma.gov/okdhs.html and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. High-resolution agency logos are available at https://oklahoma.gov/okdhs/library/okdhslogo/fullcolor.html