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Tippecanoe County approves RFA 3 opioid‑settlement grants, expands reporting and SMART goals
Summary
The Tippecanoe County Board of Commissioners approved RFA 3 opioid‑settlement grant contracts to a group of local agencies after the Tippecanoe Regional OSC Element Community Committee presented its 2025 annual report and explained new quarterly reporting and SMART goals tied to Exhibit E.
Carol Ott, chair of the Tippecanoe Regional OSC Element Community Committee, told the Tippecanoe County Board of Commissioners on June 1 that the county’s opioid‑settlement grant program has focused on housing, treatment and warm‑handoff recovery services and that the grant process will move to quarterly reporting with specific SMART goals for RFA 3 awardees. The board then approved contracts to the listed grantees except one signature pending.
The committee’s 2025 summary showed RFA 2 awards went to 11 agencies and tied projects to “Exhibit E” strategies required by the settlement. Ott said agencies funded work in medication‑assisted treatment, wraparound reentry services, youth resilience programs and community outreach. She cited grantee counts reported by agencies: the Recovery Cafe reported about 6,077 service contacts; NAMI West Central Indiana reported about 4,000 service interactions; Outreach Advocacy Center reported 622 patients in four months; Meridian Health Services reported 398 served; Lafayette Transitional Housing reported 271. Ott said those figures represent service contacts across programs and are not necessarily unique individuals.
Commissioners approved the RFA 3 contracts by voice vote and asked staff to collect signatures for Limestone Health, which Ott said was not present to sign that day. Ott described process changes implemented before RFA 3, including community listening sessions, reconfigured review committees, expanded conflict‑of‑interest safeguards and a grant‑variance review process to handle program adjustments after awards.
The RFA awards approved by the board include (as described by staff and the committee) Big Brothers Big Sisters (community match/overdose‑related programs), Overdose Lifeline, Meridian Health Services (Home with Hope recovery housing), Mental Health America (youth resilience training), NAMI West Central Indiana (wrap and training programs), Outreach Advocacy Center (community clinic), Recovery Cafe (community outreach and a capital project to acquire the 2300 Ferry Street building), Lafayette Transitional Housing (housing assistance), Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office (T‑Cards reentry program), The Hive (community access/facilities), Oxford House, Food Find Ministries and other community partners. Ott said awardees must identify in their applications which community priorities (tied to Exhibit E) their programs address.
During Q&A, commissioners pressed on metric clarity. Ott confirmed that high service counts include repeat visits and emphasized the move to SMART goals and quarterly reporting in RFA 3 to capture more precise, measurable program outcomes.
The board approved the RFA 3 grant contracts by voice vote; Limestone Health’s signature was deferred and staff will collect it later. The committee and county staff said they will continue to refine reporting and post‑award auditing to improve accountability and transparency for opioid‑settlement dollars.
