WASHINGTON, DC. E-government and one- stop access to on-line information about federal funding resources take another step forward this week, as Grants.gov, which is currently serving over 3,000 organizations seeking funding and distributing over 700,000 email funding notifications weekly, will broadcast live on the Web today in a Webcast titled "Spread the Word" at 11am EST. The Webcast will focus on Grants.gov features, benefits, and successes; future directions; and ways to share grants information. Grants.gov was recognized earlier this year as one of two federal E-government initiatives to meet White House Office of Management and Budget operational goals.

The Grants.gov Webcast will feature a Question & Answer session with key members from the Grants.gov Program Management Team. Grants.gov is a collaborative effort led by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as managing partner, with partners including the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Labor and Transportation, Environmental Protection Agency, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Science Foundation. Some federal agencies now exclusively use grants.gov for their announcements.

Grants.gov offers users a single secure Web site to find and apply for federal grants. Users can access, find, and apply for grants from more than 900 programs representing more than $360 billion in annual grant funds offered by 26 Federal grant- making agencies. A simple online subscription ensures that new funding announcements, including those selected by interest area, will arrive by email when they are published.

WASHINGTON, DC. The Corporation for National and Community Service this week announced the availability of $5.1 million in grants to support innovative partnership models that increase involvement of people with disabilities in national and community service and result in measurable impact. The awards will support partnerships that engage people with disabilities in national and community service and focus in two areas: engaging disabled veterans in service to their communities, and assisting young people with disabilities in the transition from school to adult life. The Corporation for National and Community Service provides opportunities for Americans of all ages and backgrounds to serve their communities and country through three programs: Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America.

Corporation for National and Community Service CEO David Eisner announced the funds, stating, "Too often we think of people with disabilities as recipients of services, without recognizing their extraordinary capacity to improve the lives of others. These grants will support the best programs in the country who are providing encouragement and opportunity for more disabled Americans -- particularly veterans and young people -- to answer the President's call to service and help meet pressing needs in their communities."

Eligible applicants are national or regional public and private non-profit organizations, including faith-based and community-based organizations and educational institutions, with experience working with disabled persons and intent to operate projects in at least three states. Partnerships among organizations that do this work are encouraged as well. Funds may be used for a variety of purposes, including to recruit, train, and supervise persons with disabilities as volunteers, provide information about volunteer service to disabled populations or to help service organizations adapt programs to encourage greater participation by individuals with disabilities.

Applications are due to the Corporation no later than April 12, 2005. The Corporation expects to make one to five grant awards for a three-year period, in amounts ranging from approximately $1,000,000 to $5,100,000.

SHELBY, NORTH CAROLINA. "From our selection in 2001 as a pilot site for the International Downtown Association's program "Addressing Homelessness" to the realization of a completed 10-Year Plan, Shelby remains committed to breaking the sad cycle of homelessness," states Mayor W. Ted Alexander. Mayor Alexander, who just last month made a public announcement of his commitment to develop a 10- Year Plan and was also a recent signer to the Mayors' Covenant of Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness, is building his city's initiative to end chronic homelessness with an eye to success in his city of 20,825. Showing proof of the partnership by every level of government were the federal and state partners joining Mayor Alexander for his 10-Year Plan announcement. Present in Shelby were United States Interagency Council Executive Director Philip Mangano and North Carolina Homeless Policy Specialist Martha Are.

At the recent press conference, Shelby Police Department Captain Mark Brooks, a member of the Mayor's Task Force on Homelessness, reviewed the results of the January 2005 one night count in Shelby. The count surveyed 84 individuals and found that 87% were unemployed, and 71% were seeking employment. Just as in the city's prior 2004 count, the census team found that those surveyed were from Cleveland County. Captain Brooks stated that, if the city's goal of ending chronic homelessness in the next decade is to be met, the services that are most needed include jobs and transportation, housing that is affordable, and medical care.

In 2002 the International Downtown Association, which has expressed its support for the Administration's initiatives to end chronic homelessness, awarded the Uptown Shelby Association a technical assistance grant to address homelessness, with the recommendation that Shelby develop a formal coalition to build its collaboration. The IDA also recommended that Shelby conduct a homeless census that would include shelters, jails, and unsheltered persons, and the City and the surrounding Cleveland County executed its first census on May 21, 2004, with over 40 volunteers participating.

Among the findings of the 2004 census were that 74% of those interviewed reported staying in shelter the night before the survey, and 78% call Cleveland County home. 42% were homeless for 3 months or less, and 43% were homeless less than 90 days in the prior year. 88% stated that their homelessness was due to a layoff or lost job, and 33% reported domestic violence as the key reason. Those surveyed were 57% male and 43% female.

Shelby was recognized in 2004 by the North Carolina Association of County Directors of Social Services Best Practice Awards for its census. All the time and resources for the census were donated, including hot coffee, toiletries, and breakfast which were distributed to homeless persons, a volunteer training lunch event, and the site and supplies for the census operations center. Agencies involved included the Department of Social Services, United Way, Abuse Prevention Council, Homeless Shelter Staff, City Of Shelby Police Department, Cleveland County Sheriff's Department, community volunteers, Gardner-Webb University students, faith community representatives, Uptown Shelby Association, McDonald's, Chamber of Commerce, formerly homeless persons and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) volunteers.

Many communities have recently conducted a first- time census of streets and shelters; others have long records of conducting such counts. Drawing on the e-news story elsewhere in this issue, here are a few ideas for replicability that the Shelby, North Carolina census of shelters, jails, and streets recommended based on the experience of conducting its own count.

Among Shelby's recommendations were:

• Develop a broad based committee to focus on the census. Law Enforcement played a key role in defining camps and locations of homeless persons.
• Establish what definition will be used to define homelessness. Who will be counted?
• Consider offering a token of appreciation to the homeless person for participating in the survey. Shelby volunteers offered a cup of coffee and bag of toiletry items to everyone approached. If an individual participated, they also received a coupon for a free breakfast the following morning.
• Advertise to the homeless population that the census will be occurring.
• Have an introduction for volunteers to rehearse their approach to persons experiencing homelessness.
• Hold a training luncheon for the volunteers with specific instructions on how to conduct the census and safety issues.
• Prepare a survey that is concise and captures the information that is desired. Shelby's survey was just ten questions.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development last year published a guide to conducting counts that describes several methods for identifying, counting, and learning something about homeless people who are unlikely to be found in shelters or in other residential programs within a local homeless assistance network. Information about these approaches was gathered from communities throughout the country, and examples of their methods are provided throughout the Guide. Examples of work sheets, timelines, survey forms and more from Boston, New York City, Denver, Philadelphia, Seattle, Atlanta, Long Beach, Broward County, Florida, Washington, and Kentucky are included.

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI. "The proof is in the numbers," exclaims St. Patrick Center CEO Dan Buck when asked whether Assertive Community Treatment is effective in ending chronic homelessness. "We had the research that said it worked, we visited programs such as Pathways to Housing in New York City and saw it working, but it's just incredible to watch the impact that ACT can have in your own community. It is working," Buck said.

St. Louis' St. Patrick Center implemented their first ACT Team in January 2004, and in just 13 months the results are mounting up. 71 Chronically homeless people have been engaged by the ACT team, and, of those, 49 are accepting psychiatric care and receiving and taking medications for their mental illness. The majority of those engaged are men. Most impressive is that 42 of these individuals have accepted permanent housing, and to date, 35 of them (83%) are still housed. Through these housing placements, the ACT team has ended over 120 years of homelessness (an average of nearly 3 years of homelessness per person.)

The e-news previously reported on the St. Patrick Center's success in its new approach to its clients, many of whom were finding it hard to believe that their new housing is almost unconditional. "We just tell them, 'Here's a key. You have a home. Come with me'," said ACT Team Leader Mary Lim-Lampe. Now, she says, "We've had wonderful wins and some heartbreaking losses. But even some individuals who can't be stabilized in independent living situations are benefiting from this new treatment approach," sharing a story about a client who was involuntarily committed when it was deemed she could not care for herself. "The team was able to assemble the client, the ACT psychiatrist, a case manager from the shelter, and the ACT Team Leader to give compassionate and coordinated care. We were impressed with the program's ability to make sure we were all on the same page. The client understood that we all were there for her, which has contributed to her success in remaining compliant on her medications for the first time in 3 years."

The St. Patrick Center ACT program is made possible by a $1.5 million, 3 year grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health. The grant includes with housing support, psychiatric care, social worker, employment specialist, and Team Leader.

"We hope these events during Health Care for the Homeless Week will forge new relationships in our communities, strengthen existing relationships, and better inform our neighbors about the connections between homelessness and health," stated National Health Care for the Homeless Council Executive Director John Lozier. Health Care for the Homeless Week will be observed March 21-26.

Among the activities that communities are planning will be that of the Fourth Street Clinic in Salt Lake City which will host a three-part lecture series with the Salt Lake City Public Library called "Moving Forward: How Salt Lake City Will End Homelessness in Ten Years." The Chattanooga-Hamilton County, TN, Health Department will host a question & answer session with the Medical Director, while Community Action Partnership of Natrona County, Wyoming will receive a mayoral proclamation and host a tour and open house for federal, state and local elected officials. Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, New Hampshire will provide a briefing for the hospital management team. San Francisco Community Clinic Consortium will host a lunchtime presentation at the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and Philadelphia Health Management Corporation will host an open house at the Mary Howard Health Care for the Homeless site where there will be an announcement of $150,000 /three-year award from Independence Blue Cross to assess and expand the center.

Health Care for the Homeless is one of several U.S. Department of Health and Human Services funded programs proposed for increases in the President's FY 06 budget, with several of the increases focused on homelessness prevention efforts. Health Care for the Homeless Programs are proposed for a 17.9% increase. The FY 06 budget seeks $150 million to expand access to effective treatment and maintain existing commitments under the 2004 $100 million Access to Recovery substance abuse treatment voucher program for 14 states. $2.0 billion is sought for Health Centers in medically underserved areas, a $304 million increase, fulfilling the President's commitment to create or expand 1200 center sites by 2006 and begin the commitment to establish a center in every high poverty area that can support one through the creation of 40 new sites in high poverty counties at a cost of $26 million. Almost 2.4 million additional individuals will receive health care in 2006 trough over 570 new or expanded sites in rural or underserved areas.

. . . that the President's FY 06 budget proposes a $1,168,000 increase for the Department of Labor's Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program (HVRP) , which is projected to serve over 14,750 individuals in FY 05 and 16,250 under the FY 06 proposal.

. . . that $6.7 million in new DOL funds were awarded to 16 states under the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program awards in July 2004, to provide occupational training, placement assistance, education, and other services to veterans. An additional $10.3 million in second year funding was awarded to expedite reintegration of veterans into the work force.

. . . that HVRP is a McKinney-Vento Act program and is the only federal program exclusively focused on employment of homeless veterans. HVRP funds are competitively awarded to state and local workforce investment boards (WIBs), local public agencies, and non-profit organizations, including faith-based and community organizations.