New Opportunities for Training and Technical Assistance in 2019

It has been busy here at OACAA so far in 2019! The staff has been working hard to position the Ohio Community Action Network for success between the hosting the winter conference, getting up to speed on the DeWine administration and everything in between. Although here in the office we see the hustle and bustle of planning and coordinating events …

Recap: 2018 Annual Summer Conference

Over 200 Community Action professionals, partners, exhibitors, and trainers joined us last week in Dayton, Ohio for the 2018 Annual Summer Conference, #OHASC18, and we’re glad that they did. Together we enjoyed another great lineup of featured speakers and training workshops geared directly toward the Community Action Network. Five tracks including Leadership, Housing, Energy, Fiscal/HR, and Data gave opportunities for …

Nurturing motherhood through challenges

No matter how you look at it, parenting is tough. But when you add financial struggles and substance recovery to the challenges of raising three young daughters, it all can become very overwhelming. Meloney, a Mansfield, Ohio native, was struggling to raise her children while also living in poverty and trying to overcome addiction. She had difficulty maintaining a job, …

Community Action works by looking beyond the present

The Community Action Network works to provide comprehensive services for low-income Ohioans to help overcome obstacles, provide opportunities to become self-reliant, and to alleviate poverty in communities. It is because of this mission and approach that our neighbors, not only here in Ohio but across the country, are meeting their goals and getting out of poverty. Ohio Heartland Community Action …

Leadership Training Series

Last year, OCATO partnered with OSU’s John Glenn College of Public Affairs to pilot a leadership training series for Ohio’s Community Action Network. Because we received such great feedback from participants, we are bringing it back for 2018! The series, which is suitable for aspiring, emerging, and experienced Community Action leaders, will be tentatively held once per month June through …

Staff Spotlight, February 2018

We are proud to have Jeannette Jarrett as part of our team and thank her for her many contributions to the Community Action mission. Name: Jeannette Jarrett Title: Operations and Support Specialist Organization: Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies (OACAA) Time with Community Action: 24 years Jeannette Jarrett joined the OACAA team in 2016 as Operations and Support Specialist, and …

2018 Winter Legislative Conference Recap

Thank you to all who attended the 2018 Winter Legislative Conference, #OHWLC18! Over 200 Community Action professionals, partners, vendors, presenters, and elected officials joined us in Columbus last week. We hope you enjoyed the great lineup of featured speakers and workshops. Photos from the mobile app and others throughout the conference can be found in our Flickr album. If you …

Learning Communities: A collaborative experience

Community Action Agencies (CAAs) around Ohio, as well as around the country, are always looking for ways to improve services and strategies that ultimately impact poverty in their communities. Peer-to-peer facilitated learning is an ideal way to identify effective practices that address the causes and conditions of poverty. The Community Action Partnership has taken the lead on developing new ways …

Effective grant writing

Grant writing is the process of requesting funds from various sources, typically through a competition that requires submission of an application or proposal. Nonprofit organizations rely on this form of fundraising to support programs, agency operations or other financial needs. Grants are especially popular because they are considered “free money” by many in the industry, which leads some to believe …