Champ Chain Winner: Amy Jarrett

This month's Champ Chain winner is so deserving of the recognition for her leadership, and commitment to her property and team...please join me in congratulating Amy Jarrett, our Community Manager at The Ranch!

"Amy comes to work every day in a great mood, and encourages all of us to strive to do our best.  She makes you want to come to work, and work as a team to accomplish our goals as a unit.  Even if she's quiet, don't let her fool you; she is a tremendously hard worker and drives all of us.  I want to personally thank Amy for being such a wonderful person to work for.  She deserves one big shout out for making so many people who work for her love their job.  I have never worked for someone who is so humble, even-tempered, fun, kind, and fair.  Big love and respect to someone who takes care of 700+ college students."  - Kaitlyn Key, Leasing & Marketing Manager 

Thank you, Amy, for being such an amazing example leadership, and for taking great care of our team and our residents.  We appreciate you so much!!

Captain John's Health Bootcamp - October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. 

Don’t Forget Screening

Despite some controversy, studies show that breast cancer screening with mammography saves lives. It doesn’t help prevent cancer, but it can help find cancer early when it’s most treatable. For most women, regular mammograms can begin at age 40, but specific recommendations vary by age and risk.

If you are age 40 – 44:

You can choose to begin yearly mammograms. It is important to talk to a doctor about the risk and benefits of mammograms at these ages.

If you are age 45 – 54:

Mammograms are recommended every year.

If you are age 55 or over:

Mammograms are recommended every other year. You can choose to continue to have them every year.

Clinical breast exams and self-exams are not recommended. But you should be familiar with your breasts and tell a health care provider right away if you notice any changes in how your breasts look or feel.

Other Important Risk Factors for Breast Cancer

Unfortunately, there are also a number of important breast cancer risk factors that women have no control over. Knowing which ones apply to you can help you understand your risk and do what you can to lower it. If you feel you’re at high risk, talk to a doctor or other health professional. These can increase a woman’s breast cancer risk:

• Older age, especially 60 years or over

• Family history of breast cancer

• First menstrual period (menarche) before age 12

• Menopause at age 55 or over

• First childbirth after age 35

• No children

• Tall height (5’8” or taller)

• Dense breasts

• History of benign breast disease (like atypical hyperplasia)

Welcome Home! Homestead U Welcome Their Newest Residents

Homestead U teams welcomed their new residents for the 2020/2021 school year. With COVID protocols in place and a new "drive-through" move-in strategy, onsite teams saw one of the smoothest move-ins on record. "Residents and parents were extremely happy with the process." said Shannon Latsko,  National Leasing & Operations Manager for Homestead U. "With over 4,000 move-ins across the country, we staggered the days for social distancing, and it made it easier to accommodate where help was needed."

With most schools starting with virtual schedules, there are still many students waiting to move. The teams will continue to prepare for the second wave of move-ins, and most communities are still leasing for the 20/21 school year, which will also have an effect on final move-ins. "We truly want to thank everyone for their hard work. I know turns and move-ins are challenging, but it truly is teamwork in it's rawest form. Congratulations! You did it." said Latsko.

Home Grown Talent

As a people-service industry, we know the unique value and talents our staff provides to our residents. Homestead is committed to re-investing in our staff and providing promotional opportunities to allow our staff to grow with us. Here are some recent summer promotions:

Summer Staff-Up Stats

With summer turns occurring, Homestead went through our summer staff-up period for student-housing, where we increase our staffing to have all hands available for turns. With COVID altering our turn operations, adequate staffing was more critical than ever. We hired just over 100 staff members (108 to be exact) in a 10-week period to onboard them for turns and provide a smooth transition for our students. We think this was our best turns to date- very well done by our staff! 

Scan Me!

Because of COVID, businesses had to rethink how to get physical marketing pieces into the hands of customers. One of the emerging techniques is the revitalization of the QR code. The Homestead Companies Marketing team has adopted this technology and has created new experiences for users. With the rise in mobile device sales, technology has allowed consumers to get to their destinations quicker and easier. On-the-go consumers are quickly becoming accustomed to online shopping via mobile devices and often require a quick and efficient way to do their research. QR Codes have emerged as a convenient alternative to traditional print advertisement formats. QR Codes offer users with relevant advertising and hyper-local information, which has become popular in the U.S. and Canada. Since the Homestead has begun using these innovative QR Codes, the company has increased its ad exposure by almost 10%.  "We are currently using QR codes for self-guided tours, online reviews, digital brochures, and enter to win promotions," said Ryan McGahan, Vice President Of Operations. McGahan continues, "QR codes are easier to use now, and the data you can collect on a user is invaluable. As soon as the user scans the code, we capture phone#, name, and email in realtime. It can be a great way to generate leads, and we are enhancing the program in 2021."

Check out the experience here by opening up your camera app on your phone and hover over the code:

Scan the QR with your phone app and enter to win a $20 gift card to Target

Employee Spotlight: Qiletha Caston

Job Title: Director of Operations

Property: Homestead Companies Home Office Employee

1.) How long have you been with Homestead? 2 years 8 months

2.) What were you doing before Homestead? Property Manager (ACC) then traveling solo through Europe

3.) Where are you originally from? Memphis, TN

4.) What are your two favorite hobbies? Latin Dancing & Travel

5.) What would you most like to tell your 13 year old self? Don't fear the unknown. Embrace it!

6.) If you could have coffee with three people, dead or alive, who would it be? Lucille Ball, Janet Jackson, Barack Obama

7.) Who is the most famous person you have ever met? Ne-yo

8.) What is your dream vacation? Traveling throughout Southeast Asia for an extended period of time

9.) What is the one THING, you can’t live without? Music

10.) What is your fondest moment at Homestead Companies? Being able to witness the joy and excitement of our TX & AZ team playing in snow for the first time at the 2019 CEO Summit.

Champ Chain Winner: Rylan Romesburg

Congratulations to Rylan Romesburg, Leasing and Marketing Manager at The View. He is the newest recipient of the Homestead U Champ Chain. 

Dana Culbert, General Manager stated "Rylan has really stepped up and made leasing his #1 focus while we were down several positions.  Rylan has an "I'll figure it out" attitude, which during turn is something I'm very thankful for.  He works hard to provide guidance to our team, and has shown tremendous dedication to our future residents, answering their questions and concerns, while staying focused on occupancy goals and leasing!  Rylan also has a great sense of humor, which makes working with him tons of fun."

Health Tip: Open Enrollment

The open enrollment period for you to make elections will be September 4th through September 11th. This means all elections must be completed by close of business on 9/11 to ensure your changes are effective on 10/1.