Ann Arbor Council Member Sends Open Letter to SafeHouse Executive Director Barbara Niess-May

by Council member Katherine J. Griswold, MBA, MSW

Hello Barbara Niess-May,

SafeHouse provides a critical service in our community. Per its mission: to provide safety, support, advocacy and resources for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence and their children, and to work relentlessly to change the systems and attitudes that allow this abuse to continue. 

We can all agree that survivors, just as all vulnerable community members, are in greater need as the pandemic has created additional challenges. Therefore, I am recommending that we focus on a plan to restore the vital services of SafeHouse within the next ten days. This includes identifying what success looks like. For example, a 90 percent occupancy rate and a 90 percent satisfaction rate on the exit surveys of our clients. Yes, there are many constraints to achieving this goal in a short time, especially staffing. However, the first step is for the SafeHouse leadership team to identify the constraints and encourage community members to partner in addressing those constraints so that we can resume the critical services to our survivors.

We also need midrange and long range plans, which SafeHouse’s leadership team can develop after meeting the critical, immediate crisis we are facing. For example, we need to understand how we got to our current situation and what steps are needed to avoid a repeat. We may need an independent consultant to conduct an operational review, as well as a review of SafeHouse’s strategic plan to ensure a more resilient, effective and compassionate service organization.

Our greatest chance of meeting the needs of our community is a “roadmap to success” approach that clearly identifies the constraints to restoring this critical service in ten days so that community leaders can partner with SafeHouse leadership. The community is committed to restoring this critical service.

I am writing as a long-time supporter of SafeHouse, as someone with extensive experience with nonprofit service-oriented organizations and as a Michigan MSW. While I serve on Ann Arbor City Council, I am not writing in that capacity, although I am confident all local elected leaders share my commitment to support the mission of SafeHouse.

Thank you for speaking to me this morning. I encourage you to reach out to me and other community leaders in your efforts to restore critical services to our survivors.

Warm regards,

Kathy Griswold

Please distribute to board members as their emails are not public on the SafeHouse website.