We are proud to co-sponsor, along with the Baltimore, Maryland-based Superstar Foundation, a Superstar Award for 2019. This award recognizes the very best direct service staff in the field who distinguish themselves and their work by using data to adjust their service delivery approach while intentionally striving to build transformational relationships with those being served. It is intended to augment the financial compensation of high-performing human service professionals, while also serving as an example for others who are striving to improve their effectiveness.
The Superstar Award is a $5,000 cash prize awarded to a deserving nominee in Cuyahoga County. The local winner will automatically be included as a finalist for the national Veronica Award.
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Diane Wright, a Homeownership and Financial Counselor with CHN Housing Partners, was the recipient of the 2018 Superstar Award. This award recognizes the very best direct service staff in the field who distinguish themselves and their work by using data to constantly adjust their service delivery approach while intentionally striving to build transformational relationships with those being served.
Diane started working with CHN Housing Partners as a receptionist in the training center. There she learned how to assist people in financial crisis and found that she could relate to some of the challenges that CHN clients faced. Because of her tremendous empathy, experience in client relations, and her ability to learn quickly, Diane has been a Homeownership and Financial Counselor with CHN Housing Partners since 2011 and has served hundreds of clients within this role.
In her role, Diane works with residents to develop a financial advancement plan, collecting baseline data that is tracked every six months and meeting to review short- and long-term goals, using the data to identify specific financial indicators that demonstrate the most need. She reviews credit reports to provide guidance around credit repair, works to determine clients’ eligibility for income and household support programs, and links residents to mainstream financial products, particularly those that promote savings.
“Diane was an early adopter in taking a comprehensive approach to using data to identify areas of opportunity and has become a valuable resource for her colleagues,” said her nominator, Kate Carden, Assistant Director of Community Resources as CHN Housing Partners. “On a personal level, Diane is empathetic, kind, fun, and hard-working. She truly cares about her clients and has, on many occasions, brought client success stories to meetings or to her colleagues. It’s apparent that she’s proud of her clients’ accomplishments, and she never takes any credit for herself.”
Not only does Diane provide service as a counselor, but she is always searching for more efficient and effective ways to help them. Diane takes great pride in her work and is humbled at the idea that she is able to help people every day in such meaningful ways. She sees each client as an individual who just needs the right support, resources and opportunities to be successful.
The committee agreed that “Diane’s commitment to caring for her clients and her systematic use of data embodies the qualities that we look for in a Superstar Award recipient. We actively support this kind of work throughout our community—her accomplishments demonstrate its powerful impact.”
CHN Housing Partners is a nonprofit organization that partners with others—both in Cleveland and neighboring states—to preserve and expand the supply of critically needed affordable housing in our country. Its mission is to leverage the power of affordable, stable housing to change lives and improve communities. They develop an average 170 affordable homes each year and serve 30,000 families annually through nearly 20 housing stability services.
Saint Luke’s Foundation co-sponsors the Superstar Award alongside the Baltimore, Maryland-based Superstar Foundation. The Superstar Award is a $5,000 cash prize awarded to a deserving nominee in Northeast Ohio by a six-person award committee. It is intended to augment the financial compensation of high-performing human service professionals, while also serving as an example for others who are striving to improve their effectiveness.