It’s a Data Driven World: Making the Most of the 2013 Youth

Homelessness Count

Today’s PresentersDebby Shore, National Network for Youth,

Washington D.C.Lynn Morison, Policy Director for Ending

Youth and Family Homelessness, Bill Wilson Center, San Jose, California

Maggie Riden, Executive Director, DC Alliance of Youth Advocates, Washington DC

Tyrone Thompson, Clark County Regional Initiatives Coordinator, Las Vegas, NV

Webinar SponsorsNational Network for Youth

National Alliance to End Homelessness

John Burton Foundation for Children Without Homes

DC Alliance of Youth Advocates

We are each devoted to ending youth homelessness, increasing opportunities for homeless youth and

helping them reach their full potential

Technical DetailsTo submit live questions,

click on the “Questions” panel on your screen, type your question, and click “Send”

Presentation materials and audio will be posted on The National Alliance to End Homelessness, National Network for Youth and John Burton Foundation websites.

PurposeTo elevate awareness of the critical

importance of the Point In Time Count of 2013

To encourage stakeholders to organize locally to make this count, count !!

Provide tools, methodologies and promising practices to support your efforts to get unaccompanied homeless youth accurately counted in each community in the country (urban and rural)

HEARTH Act ImplementationAll sub-populations must be included in the Point in Time Count including youth ages 18-24

New PIT Category for Youth 18-24 included for the first time in 2013!!

Communities are encouraged to develop plans to end homelessness for everyone - including youth!!

Why a Youth PIT Count MattersAccurate data supports our ability to

advocate for homeless youth Lack of information about the scope of

youth homelessness contributes to the lack of adequate resources

Improved collaboration between youth providers and Continuums of Care can lead to better delivery of services

Stakeholders Must Work Together

Youth who are homeless

or at risk

Runaway and Homeless Youth Providers (Street Outreach, Basic

Center Shelters and Independent Living

Programs)

Adult Providers who are serving 18 -24

year olds

School Coordinato

rs Youth

Advocates

Public Systems of Care (mental

health, health, substance abuse,

TANF, Food Stamps, Law Enforcement)

Continuums of Care

Aspirations for the WebinarTo help communities plan for the youth

component of the 2013 bi-annual point in time count

To develop concrete strategies in order to ensure the most accurate data

To learn techniques for better coordination of key stakeholders

To discover creative ways to plan for tackling youth homelessness in your community

Lynn Morison Bill Wilson Center

Policy Director for Ending Youth and Family Homelessness

Partners in implementing the youth count:

Methodology and data collection Recruiting, training and deploying youth Report Findings

City of

San Jose

Bill Wilso

n Cente

r

Applied

Survey

Research

Continuum

of Care

Overview

City of San JosePopulation of over 945,000Largest city in Santa Clara County Department of Housing,

Homeless ProgramPrimary funder of Point In Time count

Bill Wilson Center Community based nonprofit agency

serving families and youth 16 programs providing counseling,

housing, education and advocacy Annual budget of $12 million with 130

staff Programs involved in count – Transitional

Housing Program, Drop In Center, Crisis Youth Shelter

Applied Survey ResearchNonprofit social research firm Conducted numerous PIT counts and

targeted youth countsContracted to facilitate count in

Santa Clara County

Santa Clara Collaborative on Affordable Housing and Homeless IssuesLead entity for the Continuum of Care for

Santa Clara CountyIncludes:

CBO’s Faith based organizations

Housing providers

County and city departments

Methodology Shelter count included youth

shelter, Transitional Age Youth (TAY) shelter and TAY transitional housing Reported on single night

Targeted street count utilizing Drop In Center staff and youth Done over two days between 3:00p.m.

– 7:00p.m.

Methodology cont’dSurvey administered to both

street and sheltered youthEvery third youth encountered

in the street countRepresentative sample of

sheltered youth

Recruiting and TrainingHomeless youth from our Drop In

CenterIdentify leadersHold focus groups

Training with ASR90 minute orientationHow to fill out enumeration formAdminister the survey

Deploying Youth went out in teams of twoStaff drove youth to sites the youth had

identified: streets, malls, encampments, abandoned buildings

Categorized youth as being under age 18 or between the ages of 18-24

Youth compensated for all hours worked including training hours

Report Findings“2011 City of San Jose Homeless Census

and Survey”• Overview of youth characteristics

• Where they typically reside at night

• Their use of government services

• Their social support networks

• What caused their homeless episode

Goals for Future Counts Expand count to include all of county –

different demographics and challenges in counting in more rural areas

Engage the homeless liaisons in the school districts in participating

Utilize the data in ending youth and family homelessness

Lessons LearnedInvolve youth from the beginning in

planning and implementing the countProvide financial incentives for

participation, ideally an hourly rateRecognize the limitations of this model

as it may not be effective in more rural areas and doesn’t take into account school data

Maggie Riden, Executive Director, DC Alliance of

Youth Advocates

Getting a Seat at the TableLessons Learned in DC

What we’re going to talk about: Our evolution in engaging our local

Interagency Council and Continuum of CareThe outcomes realized by engaging our

ICH/CoCHow we got there- strategies and approaches Looking ahead

The Context

Interagency Council

andCoC

Providers/Advocates for

Families

Providers/Advocates for

Individuals

Youth Providers

Interagency Council

andCoC

Providers/Advocates for

Families

Providers/Advocates for

Individuals

Youth Providers

2010 2012

The Evolution2010 2011

• Roughly 122 beds for youth

• $782,000 in local funding was allocated to youth

• Less than 10 youth (under 18) were counted in the annual PIT; over 600 families with a youth head of household counted

2012• 156 beds for youth• $818,500 in local funding

was allocated to single youth; $1,337,000 to families with a head of household under 24 years of age

• 26 unaccompanied minors were counted in PIT. Families with a head of household under 24 are rising dramatically.

• DCAYA conducts Youth Survey finds 390 homeless youth in two weeks of March.

• Over 230 beds dedicated to youth

• $910,000 in local funding was allocated to single youth; $2,100,000 to families with a head of household under 24 years of age

• 13 unaccompanied youth were counted in the PIT. Over 1/3 of family shelter users were headed by a parent under age 24

How we did it

Build and maintain your collective

knowledge base

Be Solution Oriented

Build linkages/coalition of the willing

among youth providers

Find your allies and advocacy partners

Become a constant presence

in your local ICHOr CoC meetings

Looking AheadIncreasing capacity of local PIT Support collaboration/join advocacy of

youth providers is ongoing

Want to learn more?

Contact

Maggie Riden, Executive Director,

DC Alliance of Youth Advocates

www.dc-aya.org

maggie@dc-aya.org or 202-587-0616

Youth and Rural Homeless Census Methodology for Southern Nevada

Michele Fuller-Hallauer, MSW, LSWContinuum of Care CoordinatorLas Vegas/ Clark County CoC

www.helphopehome.org

CoC and School DistrictTitle I HOPE Coordinator

Sits on CoC decision making body

Title I HOPE Project FacilitatorSits on the CoC evaluation working

groupMember of the Homeless Youth Services

Working Group

School District and the CensusTitle I HOPE office

Conducts monthly update of housing status for youth in school

On day of count updates their housing status report

Break out data into housing status categoriesHotel/motelStreetCar/van/camperEmergency shelterIn the home of another person/family

Youth Teams Youth team developed Homeless youth vs. out of school

youth training Specific areas assigned Target:

MallsParksRecreation centersFast food restaurants

Rural Census: Partners

Code Enforce-

ment

Animal Control

Metropolitan Police Departm

ent

Recreation

centers

Family Resourc

e Centers

Homeless Service Provider

s

ProcessCensus tract maps

Meetings

Assignments

Deployment

Report back

Contact InformationMichele Fuller-Hallauer MSW, LSW

Continuum of Care CoordinatorSNRPC-Committee on Homelessness

Regional Initiatives Office1600 Pinto Lane

Las Vegas, NV 89106(phone) 702-455-5188

www.helphopehome.org

ResourcesNational Alliance to End

Homelessness: http://www.endhomelessness. org/pages/youthcount Interactive mapFact sheets &

RecommendationsWebinars

• National Network for Youth: Recommendations For System Enhancements toward Ending Youth Homelessness:http://www.nn4youth.org/system/files/NN4Y%20Recommendations%20 REV%205-24-12-1%20copy.pdf

• HUD Guidance on Youth PIT Counts: http://www.hudhre.info/ documents/2011PITYouth Guidance.pdf

Questions

Use the “Questions” tool on the GoToWebinar Control Panel to Submit Questions

The presentation materials and audio will be posted at:http://www.endhomelessness.org/pages/youthcount

http://www.cahomelessyouth.org/past.htmlhttp://www.nn4youth.org