WASHINGTON, DC. When the 12th meeting of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness convened this week at the White House for the final meeting to occur during this Administration, United States Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary and current Council Chair Dr. James Peake noted the trajectory of the Council's revitalization since 2002, pointing out the additional members added to the Council and the important leadership evolution of the four federal agencies which rotate the position of Chair of the Council. Secretary Peake noted that the Council had achieved unprecedented results in reducing street and chronic homelessness throughout the nation, and had conducted its business "in snowstorms and hurricanes," referring to the December 5, 2002 Council meeting which occurred on a day the Nation's Capital was snowed in, and the September 13, 2005 meeting, which convened in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Council members are shown here at this week's meeting in the historic Indian Treaty Room and at the first meeting of the revitalized Council in the same room (below).

At this week's meeting, Council Executive Director Philip Mangano thanked Secretary Peake for the important role VA has fulfilled during the last six years. "First I want to thank you for the leadership that you and your staff, both here in Washington and out in the federal regions, have provided for the Council over the past year and since the revitalization of the Full Council in 2002. We are indebted to you both for sustaining and prioritizing the continuing Presidential results-oriented initiative to reduce and end chronic homelessness, with special emphasis on homeless veterans."

During the Council's history since 2002, seven different Cabinet Secretaries have been elected Chair of the Council - two Health and Human Services Secretaries (Thompson, Leavitt), two Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretaries (Martinez, Jackson), three Veterans Affairs Secretaries (Principi, Nicholson, Peake), and and the Department of Labor Secretary (Chao) served as Vice Chair. The twelve meetings represent the highest ranking meetings ever convened on homelessness in the United States. Primarily convened at the White House, Full Council meetings have included up to five Cabinet Secretaries, along with Deputy Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, Deputy Assistant Secretaries, and career staff.

In 2002 the Council added agencies and offices which had been established since the original McKinney Act, and those federal entities whose capacity for partnership and solution on the issue had become identifiable over time: the U.S. Department of Justice, Social Security Administration, White House Offices of Management and Budget and Faith-based and Community Initiatives, and USA Freedom Corps. Pictured here is the September 2005 meeting just after the hurricanes.

The Council's partnership with HUD was also noted in the presence at this week's meeting of four of the Regional Coordinators whose positions were first established by then HUD Secretary and Council Chair Mel Martinez as a tangible expression in the federal regions of the Council's partnership with state and local jurisdictional leaders. Present for the meeting were National Team Leader Michael German (second from right), New England States Coordinator John O'Brien (far right), Western States Coordinator Eduardo Cabrera (far left), and Northwestern States Coordinator Paul Carlson (second from left). The Regional Coordinators are shown here with VA Secretary and Council Chair Peake (third from left) and Council Director Mangano (third from right).

Council members welcomed testimony from Mayors Timothy Stewart of New Britain, CT and Mark Boughton of Danbury, CT, who each created and are now implementing 10 Year Plans that are jurisdictionally led, community based, and business oriented. In partnership with the Council, Mayor Stewart has initiated employment strategies with the New Britain business community, and Mayor Boughton has especially focused housing initiatives on homeless veterans. The Mayors expressed their appreciation for the collaboration and support of the Interagency Council and the federal resources being invested in their communities under their plans. Both Mayors announced significant reductions in street and chronic homelessness. Mayor Stewart (left) and Mayor Boughton (second from left) are shown here with HUD Deputy Secretary Roy Bernardi, himself the former Mayor of Syracuse.

Most importantly the Council reviewed the decreases reported in data collected from 2005 to 2007 in both chronic and veterans homelessness. Director Mangano sounded a cautionary note on current developments, indicating: "We recognize the challenges of the mortgage/foreclosure crisis and job losses across our country and the potential impact they have on our most vulnerable families and individuals. We are called to vigilance on their behalf, and new resources to ensure that prevention and intervention initiatives are in place." He congratulated HUD Secretary Preston for the work his agency is doing in making $3.92 billion available to local communities through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, indicating that Preston had prioritized "flexibility and expeditiousness" in the distribution of the new and needed funds. The resources are targeted to relieving the foreclosure difficulties and offering an opportunity to acquire foreclosed properties and other strategies for homeless and workforce housing.

OMAHA, NEBRASKA. Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey and Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan and Douglas County Commissioner Mary Ann Borgeson unveiled a new 10 Year Plan to end homelessness in their neighboring cities this week at a regional event at the University of Nebraska, becoming just the second jurisdictional partners to bridge state lines in their mission. "Homes for All" is the result of a collaborative planning process led by Metro Area Continuum of Care for the Homeless (MACCH) and supported by the Compassion Institute of the Midlands. Pictured here are (left to right): Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey, Director Mangano, Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan, and Erin Porterfield of the Metro Area Continuum of Care.

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano (pictured here), invited to keynote the program hosted by Rev. John Schlegel, President of Creighton University, who will lead plan implementation, congratulated the two cities on their partnership, noting for the audience of over 100 advocates, providers, religious leaders and housing officials: "Mayor Fahey and Mayor Hanafan have extended their political will to this Plan, daring to put the verb 'end' together with the noun 'homelessness.' And Father Schlegel has added faith inspired leadership in the Plan. Together they will put to work the business principles that will transform their communities through this Plan." MACCH, under the leadership of Executive Director Erin Porterfield, has been resolute in moving the new Plan forward.

Director Mangano, meeting with the Mayors before the press event, emphasized the importance of business planning as implementation moves forward. Following the press event, Director Mangano joined local partners, including MACCH Board President Joanie Spitznagle, for an implementation meeting for "Homes For All," which includes seven key goal areas: prevention of homelessness, easier access to services, increased availability of housing, strengthened public and political support, elimination of cultural bias and prejudice, specific options for persons experiencing chronic homelessness, and availability of comprehensive data.

Lakin Human Services Campus in Council Bluffs was the final stop of the day. Heartland Family Services, under the direction of Pete Tulipana, is sited at the Lakin Campus which is now the location of the first regional permanent supportive housing initiative for people who are chronically homeless, expanding Heartland's current housing commitment from scattered site housing. At the Campus, Director Mangano met with the Heartland Board of Directors, primarily composed of business and community leaders and congratulated them on the new developments and urged them to follow a business model in advancing plan goals. The campus also includes American Red Cross, Boys & Girls Club, MICAH House and The Salvation Army.

MACCH represents more than 100 organizations working together to connect housing, mainstream resources, employment, health care and other supportive services to people in need. In March 2008, the Prevention Task Force of MACCH conducted a study to determine the cost of homelessness in the metro area. It found that a family of four, with another child on the way and who spent 60 days in homelessness cost the community $29,312 for shelter and visits to the emergency room. A three- bedroom apartment in Omaha for those same 60 days cost $2,022. As plan implementation moves forward, Director Mangano encouraged the partners to expand their analysis of costs and see their Plan as a living document that will incorporate what's working. Director Mangano is pictured here with Rev. John Schlegel, President of Creighton University.

WASHINGTON, DC. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced the award of more than $60 million in treatment resources for people experiencing homelessness and for individuals in the criminal justice system.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced the award of 25 grants totaling $50 million over five years to community service organizations across the country offering substance abuse treatment and mental health services to people who are homeless. Awards are in two categories - Services in Supportive Housing and General. Services in Supportive Housing grants provide resources to help formerly homeless individuals remain in permanent housing by providing linkages to appropriate treatment for substance use or mental disorders and other support services. The General Treatment for Homeless category allows communities to address local priorities for persons who are homeless and who have substance use or mental disorders or co-occurring disorders, and to develop service systems to increase the number of these persons who are placed in stable housing and receive needed treatment and related services.

Twelve services in supportive housing and thirteen general grants were awarded. The programs selected for grants will receive approximately $400,000 each year, over the course of five years. General treatment sites in California, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Virginia received awards. Supportive housing sites in Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island were recipients.

SAMHSA also announced ten Adult Criminal Justice Treatment grants totaling $11.8 million over three years. The program is designed to address gaps in substance abuse treatment services for adults involved with the criminal justice system. Grant recipients will use the funds to expand and or/enhance the community's ability to provide a comprehensive, integrated, and community-based response to a substance abuse treatment capacity problem. The program will also help to improve the quality and intensity of substance abuse treatment services for adults who are in some form of judicial or community justice/corrections program, such as probation, parole, or community corrections.

The programs selected for these grants can receive up to $400,000 each year over the course of three years. Awards were made to California, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, and Tennessee.

WASHINGTON, DC. Increasing the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families is just one of the opportunities for youth in the U.S. Department of Labor's newly announced $47 million YouthBuild competition. Resources are available to help disadvantaged youth with the education and employment skills necessary to achieve economic self-sufficiency in occupations in high demand and postsecondary education and training opportunities; opportunities for meaningful work and service to their communities; and opportunities to develop employment and leadership skills and a commitment to community development among youth in low- income communities.

YouthBuild is a youth and community development program that simultaneously addresses several core issues facing low-income communities: housing, education, employment, crime prevention, and leadership development.

DOL hopes to serve approximately 2,900 youth participants during the first year of the grant, with projects operating in approximately 90-100 communities across the country. Under this announcement, DOL will be awarding grants to organizations to oversee the provision of education and employment services to disadvantaged youth in their communities. Each applicant should indicate the proposed number of participants to be served based on an average annual cost of between $15,000 - $18,000.

The primary target populations for YouthBuild are high school dropouts that may also be adjudicated youth, youth aging out of foster care, and other at-risk youth populations. The YouthBuild model enables these youth to access the education they need to move on to post-secondary and high growth, high demand jobs which will enable them to prosper in the 21st century economy. There are currently over 200 YouthBuild programs operating in the United States.

Funds made available through the YouthBuild grants will be used to carry out a YouthBuild program with the following core objectives: to enable disadvantaged youth to obtain the education and employment skills necessary to achieve economic self-sufficiency in occupations in demand and post-secondary education and training opportunities; to provide disadvantaged youth with opportunities for meaningful work and service to their communities; to foster the development of employment and leadership skills and commitment to community development among youth in low-income communities; and to expand the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families by utilizing the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth.

WASHINGTON, DC. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced over $21 million in awards to assist and support homeless youth, including youth in rural areas. The Family and Youth Services Bureau of the Administration for Children and Families announced the awards

Of the funding announced, approximately $2.5 million supports new demonstration projects. 20 grants totaling $1.9 million were awarded to community based organizations in rural areas for emergency shelter care for runaway youth using the "host home model" that involves 24 hour adult supervision. The funding announcement noted: "In rural America, issues such as lack of transportation and available and nearby services are pressing issues for communities to overcome. Host home models have proven a valuable resource to address the runaway issues in such communities." Applications were invited from entities including faith-based and community organizations that have the ability to address the needs of runaway youth in rural areas through the host home model.

Three collaborative demonstration grants totaling $600,000 were awarded to rural states and localities to develop collaborations to serve homeless youth. Communities are required to coordinate with both Transitional Living Programs (TLP) as well as Independent Living Programs (ILP) to deliver services to homeless youth in rural areas.

Rural demonstration awardees were: Colorado Department of Human Services; Iowa Department of Human Services; Minnesota Department of Human Services; Redwood Community Action Agency, Eureka, CA; San Diego Youth & Community Services' United Services, Inc., Dayville, CT; Sanctuary, Incorporated of Guam; Hawaii Youth Services Network, Honolulu, HI; Children's Home and Aid Society of Illinois, Granite City, IL; The Youth Service Bureau of Illinois Valley, Inc., Ottawa, IL; Every Woman's Place, Inc., Muskegon, MI; Third Level Crisis Intervention Center, Inc., Traverse City, MI; Catholic Charities, Inc., Jackson, MS; Born2Win Ministries, Inc., Greenville, NC; Panhandle Community Services, Gering, NE; CEDARS Youth Services, Lincoln, NE; Child and Family Services of NH, Manchester, NH; Families and Youth, Inc., Las Cruces, NM; Oswego County Opportunities, Inc., Fulton, NY; Looking Glass Youth & Family Services, Inc., Eugene, OR; Yamhill Community Action Partnership, McMinnville, OR; Rural Resources Community Action, Colville, WA; and Fremont County Group Homes, Riverton, WY.

120 grants totaling $16.6 million were made under the Basic Center Program, which funds community-based programs that address the immediate needs of runaway and homeless youth and their families. The central purpose of these programs is to provide youth with emergency shelter, food, clothing, counseling, and referrals for health care. 21 grants totaling $2 million were awarded under the Street Outreach Program, which funds private, nonprofit agencies to conduct outreach designed to build relationships between grantee staff and street youth with the goal of helping young people leave the streets.

WASHINGTON, DC. More than 150 jurisdictional partners from states, cities, and counties joined last week's National Tele-Summit of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness in partnership with the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The national conference call was convened to provide partners with an overview and federal guidance on the $3.92 billion Neighborhood Stabilization Program resources now allocated by HUD.

"The $3.92 billion is an important balance to the 'macro' resources which assure the financial stability of our largest financial institutions," indicated United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano. "The $3.9 billion represents an opportunity to fashion 'micro' strategies at the community level to prevent and end homelessness and to acquire new housing targeted to homeless people." Director Mangano was joined by HUD Deputy Chief of Staff Anoop Prakash, who provided an overview of NSP and its process and timetable, as well as fielded questions from around the country and encouraged partners to think strategically about collaborations to deploy NSP resources effectively in their communities.

Under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act 's Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), the new funding provided through HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program is directed to the frontline of communities to purchase foreclosed homes at a discount and to rehabilitate or redevelop them in order to respond to rising foreclosures and falling home values at the local level.

The resources - especially the requirement for each entitlement grantee to direct 25% of funds to households below 50% AMI - also represent an opportunity for 10 Year Plan communities to align their goals with the new resources to produce housing outcomes that prevent and end homelessness.

State and local governments can use their neighborhood stabilization grants to acquire land and property; to demolish or rehabilitate abandoned properties; and/or to offer downpayment and closing cost assistance to low- to moderate-income homebuyers (household incomes up to 120% of AMI). Grantees can create "land banks" to assemble, temporarily manage, and dispose of vacant land to stabilize neighborhoods and encourage re-use or redevelopment of urban property.

The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness has encouraged attention to the needs and opportunities for homeless populations and at-risk and extremely low income renters as resources and strategies are developed at the local level to address the housing market changes accompanying foreclosure and falling values. Both government and community entrepreneurs have already stepped forward amidst the tide of foreclosures to find housing opportunity for people who are homeless in their local markets.

The Interagency Council will host state, county, and city jurisdictional leaders, 10 Year Plan leaders, 10 Year Plan Community Champions, and State Interagency Council on Homelessness leaders for a second tele-summit to share developments in shaping NSP resources to the needs of people who are homeless and encourage the inclusion of people who are homeless or below 30% of AMI in NSP plans. State Council and city and county 10 Year Plan leaders can indicate their interest in the call by sending an email to usichsummit@usich.gov

HUD will issue specific rules that will assist communities in the administration of this new program and to ensure, as Congress directed, that these grant funds be obligated for specific activities within 18 months. According to HUD, the Congressional timetable may present challenges to state and local governments undertaking ambitious, and in some cases unprecedented, acquisition and rehabilitation activities. Meanwhile, HUD is actively encouraging local governments receiving direct grants to coordinate with each other, and with their state governments, to make most effective use of available funds.

Numerous useful NSP resources are now available on-line at the HUD NSP web site.

WASHINGTON, DC. At the most recent Full Council meeting this week, United States Department of Labor Assistant Secretary for Veterans Employment and Training Services (VETS) Charles Ciccolella (pictured here) reported on results from the collaborative effort of DOL through its Job Corps program to reach and recruit aging out foster care youth for residential education and training placements. According to Assistant Secretary Ciccolella, the Job Corps Foster Care Recruiting initiative has significantly increased the numbers of youth who are served who were identified as foster care, runaways, or homeless individuals, enrolling over 11,000 youth from 2001 to 2007. The Assistant Secretary noted that United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano had encouraged the initiative early in the Council's revitalization, recognizing the importance of securing a residential training placement for young adults at risk.

Job Corps is a no-cost education and vocational training program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor that helps young people ages 16 through 24. At Job Corps, students enroll to learn a trade, earn a high school diploma or GED and get help finding a good job. When an individual joins the program, he/she is paid a monthly allowance; the longer a persons stays with the program, the more the allowance will be. Job Corps provides career counseling and transition support to its students for up to 12 months after they graduate from the program.

The Job Corps is the nation's largest and oldest federally-funded job training and education program for "at promise" youth. With 122 centers nationwide, the program enrolls approximately 60,000 new youth each year in more than 100 career areas including the culinary arts. To enroll in Job Corps, students must meet the following requirements: be 16 through 24; be a U.S. citizen or legal resident; meet income requirements; and, be ready, willing, and able to participate fully in an educational environment.

WASHINGTON, DC. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced 2008 Science and Service Awards to 29 organizations for exemplary implementation of evidence-based interventions that have been shown to prevent and/or treat mental illnesses and substance abuse. Now in its second year, this annual award program recognizes public and private sector organizations, as well as community-based groups and coalitions, that have worked to improve their communities and the lives of individuals by providing the best services possible.

Awardees were chosen in five categories: substance abuse prevention; treatment of substance abuse and recovery support services; mental health promotion; treatment of mental illness and recovery support services; and co-occurring disorders. Awardees had to demonstrate successful implementation of a recognized evidence-based intervention, including interventions that have been published in the scientific literature and/or appear on a federal or state registry. Among the awardees are several whose clients include people who are homeless and living with mental health issues and/or addiction. One example is profiled here.

New York's Center for Urban Community Services (CUCS), under the leadership of Executive Director Tony Hannigan, won in the Treatment of Mental Illness and Recovery Support Services category for Career Network - Supported Employment in Supportive Housing. CUCS is widely recognized as a leader in the advancement of housing and service initiatives for homeless and low-income individuals and families, particularly those with mental illness and other special needs.

CUCS provides services at supportive housing programs in New York City that serve 1,375 tenants, including 475 with mental illness. CUCS implemented Supported Employment (SE) in its supportive housing sites to better meet the needs of mentally ill tenants and to help expand the field's focus on housing stability to include more of a recovery framework. Prior to implementing SE, 10.6% of the program's mentally ill tenants were employed. CUCS planned to increase the percentage of mentally ill tenants in the workforce through the introduction of SE.

SE is an evidence-based practice that is proven to assist mentally ill adults in obtaining competitive employment. At CUCS, however, many consumers and some staff believed that employment wasn't a realistic option, requiring that a series of organizational change practices be introduced to help convince the wider group that a culture of work and employment was worth pursuing. To ensure that SE was implemented with a high degree of fidelity, CUCS hired outside experts to conduct fidelity reviews. On these, CUCS received a score of 4 on a 0-5 scale, indicating a strong fidelity to the model.

CUCS' program has greatly increased the percentage of mentally ill tenants who are employed or seeking employment. At the site where CUCS first implemented SE, 30% of mentally ill tenants are now employed or engaged in the program. The average hourly wage for those working full-time is $10.90. CUCS has demonstrated that SE can be woven into the existing structure of supportive housing programs.

Momentum is building for this year's Fourth Annual National Project Homeless Connect Week, which starts December 1, 2008. With this issue, the e-news continues its coast to coast coverage of the 2008 National Project Homeless Connect Week. We'll continue coverage over the next several issues to bring you the highlights of new tools and best practices in partner communities this year. Over 200 communities in the U.S., Canada, and Australia have adopted the innovation of Project Homeless Connect.

Every Project Homeless Connect event is a "welcome" for homeless neighbors into the "living room of the community" by elected officials, resource partners, and community volunteers seeking to make resources more available and accessible to end homelessness.

In the final three months of 2008 - October through December - there are more than 55 events planned, with 14 new cities welcoming their homeless neighbors.

San Francisco, the historic home of the innovation of Connect will host its 25th Connect event during National Week. Other National Week Project Homeless Connect events are scheduled in Concord, NH, Phoenix, Danbury, CT, Miami, FL, Nashville, TN, Madison County, IL, Nashua, NH, Springfield, IL, St. Louis, MO, Pomona, CA, Springfield, MO, St. Clair County, IL, Hartford, CT, Los Angeles (multiple events), Morristown, NJ, Clarksville, TN, San Diego, Manchester, NH, Huntington, WV, San Antonio, and Minneapolis.

If your community is planning a Project Homeless Connect, be sure to visit the Council's new on-line resources to guide your results-oriented use of best practices and consumer focus. The Council has recently posted all 2007 and 2008 e-news profiles of local Project Homeless Connect events, describing partnerships, on-site innovation, resources, and results.

You can also visit web sites of local Project Homeless Connect events to read more about local planning and partnership and view short videos and other features about events. And you can download sample forms and tools for planning and debriefing your event.

email: usich@usich.gov

web: http://www.usich.gov