Dear Friend of the Center of Hope:
There’s an old saying that an elephant can’t walk through the desert without leaving tracks.
When you apply that idea to the practice of educating and empowering people, it translates to something like this: if you’re impacting people, there should be some proof…some tracks left behind.
This idea is the foundation of our philosophy at the Center of Hope.
Of course, to find the tracks you need to be willing to look. We commissioned Measurement Resources of Columbus to conduct a study on the social return on investment for our programs.
One thing that Measurement Resources told us was that just being willing and able to look for results set the Center of Hope apart from other similar organizations. Their studies show that only 25% of non-profits are even in a position to measure a social return on investment.
Measurement Resources recently wrote an article on the study they did for the Center of Hope. The entire report can be downloaded here, but in the meantime here are some of the highlights that Measurement Resources identified:
- 63% Program Success Rate—On average, 63% of COHFS participants achieved desired outcomes.
- $2,373 Cost Per Success—It costs COHFS approximately $2,373 to get one client to a successful outcome.
- $16,461 in Future Community Cost Savings—For every $2,373 donated to COHFS, the organization generates at least $16,461 in per person community savings, which amounts to a
- 594% Social Return on Investment
Translated, that means for every dollar invested in programs at the Center of Hope, the community receives a $5.94 return on investment.
Sheri Chaney Jones, the founder of Measurement Resources, termed those results “quite impressive” and says that COH is a “high-performing organization.” (For Sheri’s more in-depth thoughts, please watch our video here.)
Here’s the most important thing I want you to know as one of our stakeholders. We understand that budgets get tighter and tighter and the COVID pandemic has only made a tough situation more difficult. Every dollar is precious.
Because of that, we know that you need to be sure you are making an impact. We were founded as a data-driven organization and we are committed to measuring and demonstrating true impact on the community. We collect and review data every day, and we’re not afraid to bring an outside organization in to measure the impact.
Thank you for being a partner of the Center of Hope. We welcome the chance to continue to collaborate with you in the future. We will remain focused on making an impact on the people of our community and demonstrating those results.
If you’d like to discuss this study further, we would be happy to discuss it.
Sincerely
Tracee Perryman, Ph.D.
