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360 Communities describes shelter, food and school programs and a new Lewis House campaign
Summary
360 Communities told the county board it serves roughly 26,000 people annually across violence‑response, school‑success and community resources programs; leaders described a public campaign for a new Lewis House shelter and detailed a Scott County cultural navigator contract serving East African families.
Jeff Mortonson, president and CEO of 360 Communities, told Scott County officials the nonprofit’s mission is to “deliver safety and stability that improves lives” and described three main program areas: violence prevention and intervention, school success, and community resources.
Mortonson said 360 Communities operates Lewis House, an emergency shelter and survivor support program that serves about 250 individuals annually (roughly half children), and runs a network of five food shelves that distributed about 3 million pounds of food last year and served approximately 19,000 people. He said 360’s Partners for Success program places staff in 22 schools to address out‑of‑school barriers to academic success.
Lisa Lusk and Ari Valley provided program details and outcomes. Lusk said the organization’s fiscal year budget is about $10.5 million and it serves over 26,000 people annually; Ari Valley described school‑based services and the Housing for Success program, which targets McKinney‑Vento families for housing navigation and short‑term financial assistance.
The presentation included details of a Scott County contract that funds cultural navigation services. Mortonson and staff identified Ion, a cultural navigator who speaks Somali and Swahili, as providing navigation support at the Shakopee family resource center and Savage library; 360 staff said roughly 67 distinct households per month received navigator assistance across the county.
Mortonson discussed strategic priorities and sustainability challenges. He said Partners for Success has demonstrated impacts in earlier university studies, but that districts are struggling to pay their share of program costs. He announced a public campaign and reported momentum toward constructing a new Lewis House shelter, with a target to break ground in October and complete construction in 2027 if fundraising and design proceed as planned.
County board members asked about coordination, geographic coverage and how 360 plans to scale services while partnering with other local providers. Mortonson emphasized partnership and cautious geographic expansion to avoid duplicating local services.
No board vote was taken; the presentation functioned as an informational briefing on 360 Communities’ county‑funded work and strategic plans.
