Go Figure

So, if you can figure this out, you are smarter than I.

Promise House has a great program called STAR (Services to At-Risk Youth) that provides in-home and community-based case management and counseling services to prevent teens from running away from home.

STAR is a state-wide program funded through the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, and is in every county in Texas. Like I said, it is a GREAT program.

TDFPS contracts with us to provide the above services in Dallas County and pays us about $825,000 per year. We are to serve 1074 individual teens, along with their family members. That comes out to about $700 per kid. Not too bad.

So, I heard that the agency that had previously served Collin and Rockwall Counties was not renewing their contract. Naturally, I was interested. When I inquired with the STAR folks in Austin, they sent me this info: the contract for Collin and Rockwall counties called for the agency to serve 1174 individual teens, plus family members. The amount of the contract was $323,000.

Do you see what I see???

Collin and Rockwall counties combined have a little over 800,000 people. Dallas county, of course, is much bigger than that. Yet, more teens for almost 1/3 of the $$ we get have to be served in those counties. Somebody do the math!

I think I may know now why they didn't renew!

So, when I again talked with the folks in Austin they said that those #s were negotiated at the beginning of the contract (sounds like someone needed a better negotiater!), and the $ amount was fixed.

Well, needless to say, Promise House is not going to enter into a contract that says we can only spend $104 per kid ($323,000 divided by 1174). I told Austin that at that $ amount we could possibly serve 600 teens, or if they wanted us to serve 1174, we would need at least $650,000.

We'll see what happens.

Ah, state government....don't ya just love 'em?