Archived Story
CAO pushes for holistic approach
Published 9:37am Friday, August 17, 2012With the motto of “Helping People Changing Lives,” the Ironton-Lawrence County Community Action Organization understands as well as any how circumstances evolve and how adjusting to change can be difficult.
Now the organization is facing some change of its own.
The quasi-government agency that provides a myriad of services to the community, most of which are designed to help those in poverty facing financial challenges, is beginning a massive re-organization and consolidation that could ultimately help it better serve those in need.
The downside is that the agency employs more than 400 people and may ultimately be forced to make personnel cuts and layoffs.
This is certainly not welcome news for Lawrence County but is also not necessarily surprising either as businesses and organizations big and small continue to struggle to remain prosperous.
The focus of the consolidation efforts are to create a holistic approach to providing a variety of services to individuals all in one place.
In the past those taking advantage of the CAO programs may have to apply for each individually at multiple locations across county. The concept now will help create a complete plan for someone to get their life back on track.
And this is exactly what the CAO needs to be focused on doing.
Change is often difficult, but it is a constant and, if handled the right way, can be a catalyst for positive improvement.
Interpretation – our funding was cut and we are dimenishing services and will likely have to layoff some of our over 300 employees who are mostly friends and relatives of local officials with no actual higher education or experience in the jobs they were hired for. We will also have to give up all those rental properties we are paying for to the local good ole boys. And further, we have incorporated a new word into our vocabulary – holistic.
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