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Community Agency Profile: Trinity Services, Inc.: A Large Organization with a Personal Touch
 From the June 2002 Disabilities newsletter.Trinity Services in Joliet, IL didn't plan on expanding its staff and services by leaps and bounds over the past 15 years, but being located in the fastest-growing county in Illinois necessitated a shift in operations. "We never had the goal to grow," says Arthur Dykstra, the organization's executive director since 1987. "We looked at demand [for services] and issues in the community, and we needed to meet their needs." And so Trinity, a non-sectarian organization founded in 1950 as a school for children with developmental disabilities, began offering residential, mental health, respite, employment, and adult learning services to children and adults with disabilities in the late 1980s. Currently, Trinity serves more than 600 people in Illinois and Nevada, where it opened an office in 1995, and has an annual budget of $28 million. Ensuring Quality Services Mr. Dykstra admits that being a large agency has its challenges. He has tried to keep the agency centralized, minimizing the number of managerial staff and administrative layers. There are 14 program directors that manage Trinity's various service programs and all report directly to him. He feels that this structure improves communication between staff and prevents the agency from becoming bureaucratic. To ensure that Trinity continues to deliver quality services and meet the needs of its clients, the organization is constantly reevaluating itself. Using the 25 outcome measures provided by Dr. Gardner's Council on Quality and Leadership, Trinity randomly chooses 6 programs to evaluate each month, and reviews the personal service plans for that program's clients. 30-45 minute meetings are conducted with each client to evaluate how well their plan is meeting their personal goals and needs. Each plan and program receives a score based on the evaluation, and results are discussed at that program's staff meetings. "The question we ask is 'Are we doing what we're supposed to?'," says Mr. Dykstra. "We're trying to close the gap between what the person wants and what we're doing. [The evaluation process] creates a dialogue in monthly meetings with leadership staff." He notes that Trinity also uses consumer satisfaction questionnaires to ensure that clients are satisfied with the services they are receiving. Growth and Its Challenges Trinity's expansion has not only been fueled by population growth, but also by changes in other service agencies in the area. As other local agencies have ceased operations due to financial constraints or turned people down for services, Trinity has absorbed additional clients, and occasionally, staff. In fact, Mr. Dykstra notes that Trinity even offers some services to the community at large, such as a credit counseling service. Aside from preserving the quality of services, growth also presents financial challenges. Trinity receives most of its funding from state and federal sources, and also does fundraising in the community. The organization also operates its own businesses, such as a craft store and a fudgery, that not only provide job training to the people Trinity serves, but also much-needed operating revenue for the organization. The businesses are run by Trinity program directors. Mr. Dykstra notes that his slogan is "Everything counts," and he strives to make sure that Trinity remains a "value-based organization" despite increasing demands on its staff. One of the internal programs he has instituted is Kindness Day: one day in March is designated as a day when employees are encouraged to send carnations and write thank-you notes to their co-workers. Mr. Dykstra encourages other agency directors to stay true to their mission in the face of challenges and notes that this can be time-consuming, but rewarding. "Don't underestimate how much energy leadership takes," he cautions. "It takes a lot to accomplish what you want." For more information on Trinity Services and the supports they provide, see their web site.
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