County MRDD board gathers input for 2006 plan
Published 12:00 am Monday, November 14, 2005
Coal Grove - Napoleon could attest that great strategic plans are not created over night.
In fact, it takes weeks and lots of groundwork - just ask the Lawrence County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities.
The board has spent the past three weeks seeking input from the community, people who receive services from the MRDD board and others as it develops a strategic plan for the coming year.
“These meetings are very important in helping prioritize MRDD services, based on the needs of individuals we serve,” said Paul B. Mollett, board superintendent.
“Due to the funding climate of Ohio's MRDD Boards, it is imperative that we develop the most efficient, meaningful plan to guide our programs in 2006 so the needs of people with developmental disabilities can be met.”
The state requires an annual plan and this is the fourth time the board has used this process that has included 13 meetings with a wide spectrum of groups and agency partners, a community mailing and more than 500 surveys.
“I think we do a really good job of assessing our needs and trying to prioritize a way to use our energy and resources for the coming year,” said Sarah Diamond Burroway, Grants/Special Projects, Coordinator for the board.
Areas of emphasis included services for children, transportation needs, and the types of overall services offered throughout the entire county.
The Lawrence County Board of MRDD is accredited by the Ohio Dept. of MRDD and provides services to nearly 500 infants, children and adults with developmental disabilities and mental retardation.
All the input will be boiled down to create the goals and objectives for 2006. The board will be presented a draft plan on Dec. 7 and will vote on the plan in January. A public hearing will be hosted first, likely in early January, Burroway said.
The plan will also be used in the budgeting process, something that has become even more vitally important with MRDD cuts across the state. In 2005, the board had its $4.2 million budget cut by more than $820,000 in a variety of areas.
Burroway is pleased to point out that no services were reduced and there were not layoffs, it just made the budgeting plan more important.
“With some of the changes financially, it continues to be vitally important to (develop a smart plan) for 2006 and beyond because some of fiscal issues facing Ohio's MRDD system.”