Keili McEwen, OKDHS Communications Director
Phone: 405-397-3885
Email: Keili.McEwen@okdhs.org

**Editor’s Note: Photos and B-Roll of Award Recipients and OKDHS leadership included.

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (Dec. 1, 2021) – Oklahoma Human Services (OKDHS) announced today the investment of $27 million of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funding to organizations serving low-income Oklahoma families. These contract awards are a result of a TANF Investment Strategy created by the agency just over a year ago to receive and review proposals and deploy reserve TANF funds to nonprofit organizations with family stability as a component of their mission through collaborative, public-private partnerships.

“Oklahoma Human Services is committed to building a culture of collaboration and we believe that leveraging public-private partnerships will provide transformational pathways of hope for families in our state,” said Justin Brown, Cabinet Secretary for Human Services and OKDHS Director. “We are proud to partner with nonprofits that are already doing exceptional work across our state. Investing state dollars in their programs allows them to further expand their reach to even more Oklahoma families.”

The TANF program provides states with flexibility in operating programs designed to help low-income families with children achieve economic self-sufficiency. States use TANF to fund monthly cash assistance payments to low-income families with children, as well as a wide range of other services. While the number of families utilizing TANF fluctuates year over year, states receive the same amount of funding each year. This has resulted in a number of states having reserve dollars.

Through a competitive bid process (RFP), OKDHS selected sixteen programs focused primarily on strengthening family stability around the state that will receive approximately $27 million over the next three years to expand their programming and reach within the communities they serve:

• CCFI, Strengthening Families (Cleveland County)
• Community Crisis Center of NE OK, Family Stability Positions (Ottawa County)
• Family and Children’s Services, Safecare and Parenting Inside Out (Tulsa, Creek, Oklmulgee, Osage, Payne, Pawnee, Wagoner, Washington, Mayes, Muskogee and Rogers County)
• It’s My Community, True Dads (Oklahoma County)
• Lilyfield, Bright Futures Program (Oklahoma and Tulsa County)
• NorthCare, Safecare (Oklahoma, Cleveland and Canadian County)
• Parent Promise, Healthy Family America and Parent Exchange (Oklahoma County)
• ReMerge, Strengthening Families (Oklahoma County)
• Tulsa Community Foundation, Strong Tomorrows and Tulsa Birth Equity Initiative (Tulsa County)

With this funding announcement, Oklahoma is on the national forefront of how to utilize these dollars in a collaborative and meaningful way in communities. OKDHS created an Advisory Committee with representatives from across the state, to gather feedback and thoughtfully create a strategy that utilizes some of Oklahoma’s best resources, our nonprofit partners.

“I get to see daily the incredible work the nonprofit community does to solve complex issues in order to support families,” said Alison Anthony, President and CEO of the Tulsa United Way. “These organizations care a great deal about helping families succeed and they have the data, experience, and the passion to do it well. I am so encouraged that Oklahoma Human Services also recognizes the valuable experience of the nonprofit community and are making an investment in them that will allow them to do what they do best. Oklahoma Human Services is bringing a new energy to this effort as well, and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with the state as this strategy continues to pick up momentum.”

OKDHS plans to also fund projects focused on five additional strategic priorities through five additional rounds of RFP’s to improve outcomes for Oklahoma families including supporting basic needs of families, prevention, economic independence, pregnancy prevention and youth supports. Future solicitations will be issued by the State of Oklahoma’s contracting agency, Oklahoma Management and Enterprise Services (OMES) Central Purchasing Division.

“Inasmuch Foundation applauds Oklahoma Human Services for this significant community investment,” said Sarah Roberts, Vice President of Programs for Inasmuch Foundation. “OKDHS's commitment to partnering with private philanthropy statewide to support the incredible work done by community organizations will have a long-lasting, transformational impact. When the nonprofit sector and government work together, families win. By prioritizing organizations that are already embedded in the community and using evidence-based programming, this funding will be able to immediately help programs scale and expand the already amazing work they are doing. We are thrilled to work alongside OKDHS on this project and are excited that there will be future funding opportunities to come. Congratulations to all of the organizations that have received this initial round of funding!”

For more information on the TANF program, please visit the Administration for Children and Families’ website at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ofa/programs/temporary-assistance-needy-families-tanf

###

**B-roll is available at https://vimeo.com/652036491.
**Photos of Award Recipients and OKDHS leadership are available at https://www.dropbox.com/sh/g2tdrw24cfzmtgj/AAC3VLk3vXceEVhMRNX8c4CKa?dl=0