Program expands to assist additional homeless families
For Immediate Release
February 13, 2025
OKLAHOMA CITY — A new Pay for Success contract will help HopeHouse OKC assist more families by expanding their job-training program, hopeWORKS. The program assists women and their families who are experiencing or are at risk of homelessness by providing housing, education, job training, and job placement.
The Oklahoma City-based nonprofit expects to help approximately 25 participants through the program which is centered at the organization’s campus in the northwest corner of the metro.
Per the hopeWORKS Leadership Team, “While we’ll continue to partner with like-hearted businesses all across the OKC metro for long-term job placement, we are beyond excited to launch a new fully-integrated business endeavor, in cooperation with the Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative and Oklahoma Human Services, to directly and even more strategically employ women as we empower them to ‘rest, heal, & rebuild’ their lives in a holistic and sustainable fashion.”
Funding for the expansion of hopeWORKS is being provided through a Pay for Success contract with Oklahoma Human Services (OHS) and the Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative (the Collaborative), a subsidiary of MetaFund. HopeHouse received a similar contract in early 2023 to fund its successful hopeFORWARD program. That contract was repaid early due to the program's success in hitting their outcomes.
“This continuing partnership exemplifies how innovative funding models like Pay for Success can address complex social challenges while ensuring accountability and measurable impact,” said Sharayah Fore, Vice President of Impact at MetaFund. “We’re proud to support HopeHouse OKC in expanding its meaningful programs, which not only provide immediate stability for families but also create pathways to lasting independence and economic stability.”
The Collaborative 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.
"Oklahoma Human Services is proud to fund the HopeHouse program, which provides critical support to women and families who are homeless or are at risk of becoming homeless. By offering housing, education, job training, and job placement, HopeHouse empowers individuals to build a stable foundation and achieve long-term success. This partnership strengthens our community and helps create lasting change for those in need,” said Jerome White, OHS Adult and Family Services Assistant Director.
On-site transitional employment opportunities are offered through hopeWORKS for the first nine to 12 months of a woman’s stay. Training and certification opportunities are provided along with an immediate monthly stipend to meet a family’s basic needs.
During this transitional period, the women are taught job skills that are necessary before entering the workforce and are paid a livable wage. Through one such hopeWORKS initiative, some of the women make homemade cinnamon rolls in the facility’s industrial-sized kitchen which are marketed and sold to the surrounding community. Other opportunities are provided to learn administrative and cleaning skills on campus. Through the program, women are taught employability soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, and time management.
Upon completion of the hopeWORKS program, participants will transition into off-site career opportunities through community partnerships such as Work Ready Oklahoma while they complete the remaining aspects of HopeHouse’s wholistic programming. Once residents graduate, they have the option to move into graduate resident housing for 8-12 months and begin full-time employment. Graduate programming consists of monthly case management, drug testing, a monthly graduate family event, and a staggered rent structure.
By the end of 2025, the program anticipates that 75 percent of all participants will have completed the program with 90 percent of those securing employment.
For more information about HopeHouse and its programs, visit: https://www.hopehouseokc.com/.
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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 HopeHouse OKC
HopeHouse OKC was launched in the summer of 2011 as a non-profit 501(c)3. They serve families experiencing homelessness and are committed to providing the safe, nurturing housing communities and support to families experiencing homelessness as they break free from the bonds of poverty and become self-sustaining contributors to society. HopeHouse walks alongside those in poverty to help them achieve THEIR dreams and goals and seek a holistic transition to healthy living that includes the physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness of each person.
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.