We achieve our mission through principled governance, careful design of organizational processes, and responsiveness to community needs. MHS promotes the dignity, independence, and growth of the individuals it serves, and the safety of the community. MHS systematically collects and analyzes outcome information, in order to help clients achieve meaningful outcomes, and to improve the performance of its programs.

Members of the Board of Trustees, working with the Executive Director and Program Directors, define, articulate, and implement our mission and values. They carefully evaluate the needs of the individuals served by MHS, and promote their participation, and that of staff members, in the design of programs that can effectively and efficiently meet those needs. An audit committee meets regularly to analyze financial statements, review the annual audit, and report findings to the full Board.



Trustees have led the successful execution of a long-range, strategic plan that created the most comprehensive, single-agency continuum of care and services for homeless and disabled individuals in Ohio, with stable funding from diversified sources. They have also instituted an agency-wide system of performance improvement based on the collection, organization, and analysis of objective outcome data.



Trustees have also achieved positions of leadership in the community. The Board President, Steven Prengler, joined the Board six years ago because of his commitment to working with homeless people, healthcare and social service providers, and government officials to end homelessness in the greater Cleveland area. Past President Julie Rittenhouse is one of Cuyahoga County's leaders in the planning and utilization management of healthcare and social services. Another Past President, John Urban, served as a member of the Board of Governors of the Cuyahoga County Community Mental Health Board. MHS strives to maintain a Board that is proportionally representative of the age, race, and ethnicity of the community it serves, and to maintain full compliance with City of Cleveland Ordinance No. 655-99, Section 4. Members of the Board and their current employers are presented in the table at left.