Greetings from the office of the CEO

A great many exciting things are happening here at NHTC, including celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, and welcoming the first day of spring! Thank you for letting me share a brief overview of some important news and events that occurred this past month.

One of the most important activities that happened this month was the first meeting of the Persons Supported Advisory Council (PSAC). Michelle Powers, CEO, and Ryan Aalbu, CDO, facilitated an hour-long listening session with volunteers discussing the scope of services provided through NHTC. This group will meet monthly on the 2nd Tuesday of the month, meeting in the FRC, at 1:00 PM.

As a result of Ryan’s promotion to CDO, we conducted a search for a new Director of Human Resources. This job opening closed on March 21st, and interviews are currently being conducted to find our next HR director. Please watch out for an announcement to come in next month’s newsletter regarding this position.

The 2024 legislative session ended in March. As a group, community support providers (CSP) across the state of south Dakota lobbied for full funding of the methodology used to provide the services and supports used by our persons supported by our programs. In the end, all CsPs were funded at 98%, which is certainly appreciated, and we thank our legislators for their work on our behalf, with the funding set for the upcoming year, now the work of budgeting and planning begins, as we seek to ensure we are meeting the needs of our persons supported in the best ways possible.

The annual meeting of the NHTC Advisory Council was held on March 18th, 2024, at Killian’s in Spearfish. At this gathering, Dr. Powers shared the year in review, covering demographics of persons supported by NHTC, our impact in the community through competitive employment and giving back, as well as our work in recruiting and retaining employees.

On a final note, mark your calendars as we will be honoring the 2024 HTC Employer, Patron, and Achiever of the Year on April 13th, at the Spearfish Convention Center. Be sure to check out next month’s column, as I will be sharing our honorees and winners!