Roy Maas’ Youth Alternatives, Inc. wins 2008 Not for Profit Ethics Award, the only nonprofit  honored by the San Antonio Ethics in Business Initiative.

 

“RMYA is committed to providing the highest quality of services possible, and believes in the importance of ethical practice, rights and responsibilities to ensure that our services continue to improve,”  Gloria Berumen Kelly, CEO Roy Maas’ Youth Alternatives. 
The Ecumenical Center for Religion and Health joins with the UTSA College of Business to honor Roy Maas’ Youth Alternatives (RMYA) with the 2008 Not for Profit Ethics Award, during the 2008 San Antonio Ethics in Business Awards Dinner, Tuesday, April 8, 2008 at Pearl Stable.  
Ethics in Business Award recipients are chosen “for demonstrating the highest standards of ethical conduct, integrity and civic and social responsibility.”
What does that mean? To RMYA CEO Gloria Berumen Kelly, this award is a validation of the organization’s dedication to providing services of the highest professional quality to children and families. “Everything we do is based on what’s best for the children,” says Kelly.
Catholic Family and Children’s Services and the San Antonio Urban Council, with a grant from the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (now Health and Human Services), opened the Bridge Emergency Shelter in 1976 with a budget of $100,000 for 16 boys. Today, the organization now called Roy Maas’ Youth Alternatives, Inc., (after the organization’s first Executive Director) has expanded to a variety of counseling, residential and foster care programs, operating with a $5.5 billion budget.
The RMYA staff takes seriously their responsibility to uphold the rights of residents, clients and guardians. RMYA is internationally accredited through COA (Council on Accreditation), which means they meet the highest standards in every category of business operations including fiscal responsibility, hiring licensed professionals to work with the children in their care and maintaining a corporate culture of responsible and ethical practice. 
Since its inception, 32 years ago, RMYA has provided counseling and shelter for over 60,000 children in need, helping abused children become productive, well-adjusted members of the community.
Roy Maas’ Youth Alternatives is the only nonprofit being honored at this year’s sold out event. Other honorees include Dr. Richard Wayne, in the individual category; and Metropolitan Contracting Company, Inc.; Alpha Building Corporation and R.L. Worth & Associates, in the For Profit Business category.
The San Antonio Ethics in Business Award is an educational outreach by the Ecumenical Center for Religion and Health in partnership with The University of Texas at San Antonio College of Business. By engaging students, business leaders and the community together in this initiative, the Ecumenical Center intends to foster a climate of ethical integrity for our city.
Nominees for the Ethics in Business awards were selected by a committee of community leaders. Nominees were then required to submit answers to an extensive questionnaire about the nominee’s business ethics policies and their commitment to the community and the environment. The nominees and their nominators were also interviewed by UTSA College of Business students and the students then researched and prepared reports, based on the interviews and the questionnaire, to be used by a selection committee to determine the award recipients.  
Proceeds from the annual awards dinner help fund the community based programs of the Ecumenical Center for Religion and Health and scholarships for UTSA business students.