LANSING, MICHIGAN. Michigan planted itself firmly in the National Partnership of results oriented, performance based, jurisdictionally led, and community based 10-year planning efforts this week with the simultaneous unveiling of 60 community commitments to 10-Year Plans to End Homelessness covering 100% of Michigan's 83 counties. This unprecedented state achievement of 100% participation was celebrated at a two day Michigan Homeless Summit held in Lansing attended by more than 650 people that marked the official launch of Michigan's Campaign to End Homelessness.

A highlight of the opening day was the ceremonial presentation of the community 10-year plans to state officials including the Directors of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority and the Departments of Corrections, Community Health, and Human Services and to United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano. The opening day agenda also included remarks from Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm (by video), Council Director Mangano, Corporation for Supportive Housing CEO Carla Javits, National Alliance to End Homelessness President and CEO Nan Roman and the four state directors; and the release of the state's first Baseline Data Report from implementation of the Michigan Statewide Homeless Management Information System on the number, demographics, and service needs of the homeless population.

In her remarks, Governor Granholm presented an opportunity for all citizens in the state to endorse the Vision Statement of the Michigan Campaign to End Homelessness and to pledge personal involvement in the effort to end homelessness. Included in the Vision Statement printed on the Pledge is the belief that the elimination of homelessness is an achievable goal and the commitment to use the best data, provide the best technical assistance and training, continually search the country for the best evidence based practices, secure and maintain extraordinary commitments at the local, regional and state levels, and regularly measure progress.

Michigan State Housing Development Authority Director Michael DeVos, who spearheaded the effort and whose agency provided small planning grants to help communities develop their 10-year plans, was joined by Department of Corrections Director Patricia Caruso, Community Health Director Janet Olszewski, and Human Services Director Marianne Udow in highlighting collaborative statewide initiatives by their agencies and plans to revamp the state's approach to helping the homeless. The Michigan State Housing Development Agency is making available new housing resources to support the Campaign including $2 million each in second round funding for the chronic homeless and domestic violence housing initiatives, $3 million for homeless youth housing, and $7.5 million for a homeless families with children initiative.

In a video message, Detroit sports columnist and author Mitch Albom, who wrote Tuesdays with Morrie, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, and For One More Day, set an example by pledging his support for the Campaign including $80,000 from book royalties to support charitable efforts to end homelessness in Detroit.

In his remarks, United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Mangano praised the leadership and collaborations that created "this innovation of being the first state in the nation that has every square mile covered by a 10-year plan." As he welcomed Michigan's 60 community plans into the National Partnership where they join over 220 other community planning efforts around the nation, he noted that Michigan's effort could hopefully serve as a model for other states. Acknowledging MSHDA Director DeVos's previous work in Maine to develop the first statewide 10-year plan before bringing his expertise to Michigan, Director Mangano congratulated Mr. DeVos " for his dauntless commitment to disturbing the status quo of homelessness in two states." He urged community officials to give a priority to chronic homelessness in the implementation of their plans so as to end the homelessness of those who are 'the most disabled, the most vulnerable, those who are long term in shelters or living and dying on the streets" He also noted that the best research, which is the foundation of effective policy and investment, has been done on this population.

The Summit's second day agenda offered opportunities for attendees to gain valuable technical assistance on plan implementation strategies from a group of national and regional experts including Council Regional Coordinator John O'Brien who addressed building community support for the Project Homeless Connect innovation at a plenary session and U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Housing Service Administrator Russell Davis who helped lead a workshop on effective planning in rural areas. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is one of the Council's 20 federal agency members and has been an important partner in bringing the concerns and needs of rural areas to homeless policy discussions. Information on Mr. Davis' presentation highlighting program changes that can benefit planning partnerships in rural areas will be available on the Council's website shortly.

Pictured here, top l-r, are MSHDA Executive Director DeVos, Council Regional Coordinator O'Brien and Council Executive Director Mangano with the display of community 10- year plans. Pictured middle is Director Mangano at the speaker's podium under the state's Ending Homelessness in Michigan Is Possible banner. Pictured bottom are 10-year plan leaders from one of the 8 regions in which the plans were grouped with MSHDA Director DeVos, Director Mangano, and to the right of Mr. Mangano, Michigan Human Services Director Marianne Udow. The ceremonial presentation of plans included the award of state certificates to the plan leaders. Thank you to Rosh Sillars for the Michigan Summit photos.

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA. The San Diego City Council this week unanimously adopted a Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in the San Diego Region. The Plan was presented at a meeting of the City Council on Monday by United Way of San Diego CEO Doug Sawyer pursuant to a Memorandum of Agreement between the City and County of San Diego and the United Way in which the UW had agreed to act as convener for the development of the 10-Year Plan. The two year effort, led by a Leadership Council co-chaired by Mr. Sawyer and businessman and OliverMcMillan CEO Dene Oliver, involved over 100 stakeholders and included meetings with 18 mayors of neighboring cities within San Diego County, 17 of whom have signed a Covenant to work collaboratively to end chronic homelessness. The planning effort also included a search for best practices that took Mr. Oliver and members of the Leadership Council around the country to meet with 10-year plan leaders in other cities as part of the National Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness constellated by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, and into their own backyard to learn from the research being done at the University of California at San Diego and from model programs like the Serial Inebriate Program. Addressing the City Council in support of the Plan's adoption were San Diego Executive Assistant Police Chief Bill Maheu and Plan Co-Chair Dene Oliver, who provided details of the Housing First/Housing Plus and homeless prevention strategies outlined in the Plan and introduced United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano who'd been invited to address the Council.

Director Mangano acknowledged the determined efforts that brought the plan to fruition, noting in particular Mr. Oliver's " endurance and collaborations through all of the city's recent political turbulence to create a plan that makes sense for San Diego." Director Mangano also credited the support of the United Way including Mr. Sawyer, former Executive Director Fred Baronowski, and Plan Consultant Hannah Cohen "who has been a driving force to shape and write the plan and whose commitment now has statewide impact in California Keys." He noted that cost studies across the country have shown that providing permanent supportive housing is less expensive than people randomly ricocheting through expensive health and law enforcement systems. Director Mangano credited San Diego for being a leader in the arena of cost benefit analysis noting that the work of Dr. Dunford, Officer Liening, Sergeant Schnell, Scripps Hospital and other community collaborators that identified $3 million in costs associated with 15 chronic inebriates over an 18 month period has provided a picture of how expensive chronic homelessness is and led to other communities doing similar cost studies. Director Mangano also singled out for mention the plan's prioritization of prevention to "stop the human tragedy and economic cost before it begins" and the call for a mental health court.

Describing the National Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness being constellated by the Council, Director Mangano described to the City Council the tangible expression of Washington's partnership with state and local 10-year planning efforts through five consecutive years of record federal resources, and the President's request now pending in Congress that for the first time would provide over $4 billion in targeted homelessness resources. He noted that the federal increases have been good for San Diego providing the community with a record level of homeless-related assistance from a variety of federal agencies including more resources targeted on veterans than ever before. " That's important in a city where 22% of people experiencing chronic homelessness are veterans. This Plan positions you to invest all of your homelessness resources in innovations that will offer a return on the investments -- people off the streets and out of long term shelters no longer ricocheting through expensive systems of community care."

Pictured here, top, is Mr. Oliver addressing the City Council. At bottom after the meeting are, l-r, Council Regional Coordinator Eduardo Cabrera, Mr. Oliver and daughter, UW Plan Consultant Hannah Cohen, Attorney and Leadership Council member Pat McQuater, Council Director Mangano, Mrs. Oliver and daughter. Also present during the City Council consideration of the Plan were U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development San Diego Field Office Director Frank Riley and Operations Specialist Myrna Pasqual.

With the adoption of the plan by the City Council, an Implementation Committee will be established to develop an action strategy based on key performance measures established in the plan including an annual reduction in the number of chronically homeless persons, creation of new housing opportunities and outreach teams, progress in implementing the comprehensive Housing Plus wraparound model and establishing mental health courts and institutional discharge planning protocols and increases in the number of chronically homeless persons who find and maintain employment.

KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON. The Seattle/King County, Washington 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, A Roof Over Every Bed in King County: Our Community's 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, officially unveiled in March 2005 calls for the creation of 9500 housing opportunities for homeless individuals and families, of which 4,725 would be from new construction or substantial rehabilitation including 2000 targeted specifically for persons experiencing chronic homelessness. A progress summary prepared for the King County Committee to End Homelessness Resources Committee shows that as of September 30, 934 housing opportunities have been created, representing 11.8% of the development unit goal and 7.9% of the existing housing use goal for the King County 10-Year Plan.

The Plan was the result of a two year effort by the Committee to End Homelessness in King County, a coalition of local government representatives, local housing authorities, social service providers and other non profits, business, the faith based community, homeless and formerly homeless individuals. The Plan was developed in consultation with the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness whose Regional Coordinator Paul Carlson served as a technical advisor and continues to work with the community on the plan's implementation. The implementation effort is being led by King County, with support from the City of Seattle and the United Way of King County, with guidance from a Governing Board of the Committee co-chaired by County Executive Ron Sims and businessman and Car Toy Inc. Chairman and CEO Dan Brettler. The Governing Board recently added a new member to the Board, Sheila Sebron, a formerly homeless veteran who served eight years in the U.S. Air Force.

A United Way of King County-commissioned poll released in June found that residents of King County identified homelessness as one of three top issues facing the county with a majority believing it was a problem that could be solved. On October 2, King County Executive Ron Sims announced a joint funding initiative between King County, the Seattle Housing Authority, and the King County Housing Authority will create 215 new supportive housing opportunities, with more than 65% dedicated to chronically homeless individuals and families with intensive service needs and long histories of homelessness. For this joint funding effort, King County contributed $3.3 million in local Homeless Housing and Services Fund dollars which was matched by $2.8 million in Section 8 housing subsidies from the Seattle Housing Authority and the King County Housing Authority. The $3.3 million is the first revenue to be realized by King County from enactment by the state of the Homeless Housing and Assistance Act of 2005 which established an additional $10 document recording fee dedicated to funding homeless initiatives.

In making the announcement, County Executive Sims who also serves as co-chair of the Governing Board of the Committee to End Homelessness in King County, expressed gratitude to the state legislature for creating the new funding source and also to the "Seattle Housing Authority and the King County Housing Authority for providing the housing vouchers that make this exciting collaboration possible. These 215 units of housing with services bring us one step closer to our goal of ending homelessness in King County." Committee Project Director Bill Block added, "Pairing housing subsidies with supportive service funding is a means of leveraging our funding to its greatest advantage-not only in increasing the effectiveness of our resources but also creating housing projects that have the best chance of helping homeless individuals and families achieve long term self sufficiency."

WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS. The Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance (MHSA), a statewide homeless advocacy alliance of more than 80 agencies, has sponsored an annual conference since 1996. This year the United Way of the Massachusetts Bay, which supports a network of 259 non-profit agencies in the Greater Boston Metropolitan area, and One Family, Inc., a non profit created by the Paul and Phyllis Fireman Foundation devoted to ending family homelessness in the Commonwealth, partnered with MHSA to host the conference, Ending Homelessness: Housing First in Policy and Practice, last week at the DCU Center in Worcester, MA. This collaborative effort exemplifies the extent to which there is agreement among providers, government, philanthropy, and the business community that housing-based solutions are required to end homelessness and that Housing First efforts are proving to be more effective and less costly for both families and individuals than previous responses to homelessness. Across the country, the United Way is playing a pivotal role in many local 10-year planning efforts (see related article this issue on San Diego). 35 volunteers from the United Way of Massachusetts Bay assisted with last week's conference.

The more than 300 conference participants were welcomed by MHSA Director Joe Finn, One Family, Inc. Campaign Director Sue Beaton, and Massachusetts Bay UW Vice President of Public Policy Jeff Hayward. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano was invited to be the keynote speaker for this two day conference which also included presentations from researchers Dr. Martha Burt of the Urban Institute and Dr. Dennis Culhane of the University of Pennsylvania, National Alliance to End Homelessness President Nan Roman, Pathways to Housing Executive Director Sam Tsemberis, City of New York Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Linda Gibbs, Massachusetts State Representative Byron Rushing and two panels of Massachusetts state officials and individuals involved in 10-year plan efforts in Columbus, OH, Westchester, NY, Hennepin County, MN, and New York City.

In his remarks offering a national perspective, Council Director Mangano, who was the founding Executive Director of MHSA prior to being appointed by President Bush in 2002 to lead the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, reported that "across the country from New York to San Francisco, and places in between, innovators have developed Housing First efforts that rely on aggressive, clinically based street outreach combined with scattered site and congregate housing options. This service/housing strategy is working to create supportive housing units with customized service packages that support tenancies and end homelessness for our most vulnerable neighbors." In media interviews, Director Mangano noted the mistaken view is that Housing First means you take homeless people out of shelters and off the streets and place them in permanent housing and leave them there without services. Housing First is in fact "the rapid rehousing of homeless people with an enriched set of services to support them in their tenancies." Director Mangano is shown here with conference organizers (top, l-r) Sue Beaton, Jeff Hayward and Joe Finn.

For a workshop entitled "National Partnership for Results," Council Regional Coordinator John O'Brien was joined by Charlene Flaherty of the Arizona Department of Economic Security who described implementation of statewide performance based contracting for homeless services, St. Paul, MN Police Sergeant Paul Paulos who described his community's innovative downtown policing strategy that has already helped to move 30 formerly chronically homeless individuals into permanent housing and is being credited with a nearly 90% crime rate drop in his precinct; and Michael Dunthorne from the City of Knoxville, TN, who described how Knoxville has integrated Project Homeless Connect into its 10-year plan effort.

Prior to his keynote address, Director Mangano was presented the Canon Brian S. Kelley Public Servant Award, created in 1992 by MHSA in honor of the retired Canon of Social Justice of the Episcopal Diocese of New England who for more than 35 years has served social causes including the civil rights movement, homelessness and many others. The award recognizes individuals and institutions for contributions to ending homelessness in the Commonwealth. Previous award recipients include former U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry Cisneros, Boston Mayor Tom Menino, and former Boston Mayor Ray Flynn among others. Pictured here, bottom l-r, MHSA Executive Director Finn, Council Director Mangano, MHSA Board Chair and South Middlesex Opportunity Council Executive Director Jim Cuddy, and The Right Reverend Brian S. Kelley, Canon of Social Justice of the Episcopal Diocese of New England (Ret.).

SELMA, ALABAMA. Creating a 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in rural Alabama was a key focus of the Alabama Rural Coalition for the Homeless (ARCH) 1st annual meeting held in Selma, Alabama last week. ARCH is a coalition of homeless service providers from 44 rural counties, many of which have levels of unemployment more than twice the state average. The presenters at the conference included Alabama State Interagency Council on Homelessness program officer Lisa Castaldo who discussed the "Blueprint Toward a Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness" recently completed by the state interagency council and presented to Governor Bob Riley for review; Mid Alabama Coalition on Homeless Executive Director Henry Stough, who has worked with numerous organizations across the state on homeless issues and who helped lead the development of a 10-year plan in Montgomery, AL; and Georgia State Housing Trust Fund Executive Director John Bassett who described the replicable Housing Trust Fund model that Georgia developed to better coordinate state efforts to create housing and end homelessness and offered an overview of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Alabama Housing Finance Agency funding opportunities. Pictured here (bottom, l-r) are Mid Alabama Coalition for the Homeless Executive Director Stough, Council Regional Coordinator German, and Alabama Rural Coalition for the Homeless VP Greg Carlson.

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Regional Coordinator Michael German (shown here,top) described the National Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness being constellated by the Interagency Council that includes unprecedented levels of federal investment, the leveraging of additional state and local government, business, and philanthropic resources through the more than 225 10-year plans being created around the country, and the decreases in homelessness being reported by communities that have begun implementing their plans. Mr. German noted the Council's involvement with other 10 year planning efforts in the state including Executive Director Mangano's recent meeting with Birmingham 10-year plan committee members.

In August 2005 Director Mangano joined Alabama Governor Bob Riley at the signing of an Executive Order by the Governor creating the Governor's Statewide Interagency Council on Homelessness to develop and implement a plan to prevent and end homelessness in the State of Alabama and to serve as a statewide planning and policy development resource. The Blueprint document that has been submitted by the state interagency council for the Governor's consideration examines five main areas that would provide the basis for the development of specific programs and initiatives: Fiscal Optimization, Services, Housing, Data, and Education/Public Outreach. Following up last week's conference, the state council plans to convene a meeting of ARCH members and elected officials from the rural counties to pursue the development of a multi-county plan that would complement the state initiative.

The conference was hosted by the Cahaba Mental Health Center, and co-sponsored by the University of Alabama Department of Psychiatry, the Alabama Departments of Economic/ Community Affairs and Mental Health/ Mental Retardation, the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Alabama, the East Alabama, West Alabama, and Montgomery Mental Health Centers, the Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the Alabama Mental Illness Planning Council, and the Southern Coast Addiction Technology Transfer Center.

Baby boomers and their parents who read the recent November/December 2006 edition of AARP magazine may have noticed a little blurb in the Model Citizens column that said, "She's been a nun, a teacher, and a school principal-but it looks as if Nancy Schwoyer has finally found a career to stick with. At age 69, she's marking 20 years as executive director of Wellspring House, a homeless facility she and six friends set up in a 300 year old Gloucester, Massachusetts estate." This reference to Wellspring House is timely (see related article on Massachusetts Housing First conference) but a "homeless facility" is a decidedly low key description of this non profit organization that provides homelessness prevention assistance, emergency shelter, affordable housing, education, job training, family support and mentoring programs to hundreds of families on Boston's North Shore. Wellspring House celebrates its 25th anniversary this week at a gala at the Boston Center for the Arts.

Wellspring House describes its mission as being "a community of faith, aware that each life touches every other life...In this spirit (of hospitality) we work to meet basic human needs, and participate in social change through the provision of shelter, affordable housing, local economic opportunity and education rooted in community needs." Wellspring House operates an emergency shelter program for families in a congregate setting with live-in staff, several support services programs through its Cape Ann Families initiative, and supports the development of affordable housing through a "daughter" organization, Cape Ann Housing Opportunities, Inc. The Veronese Community Education Resource Center, dedicated in 1995 in honor of Paul and Mary Jane Veronese, life-long educators and Wellspring founders who, in 1981, sold their home to help buy the property that became Wellspring House, is home for the Foundations Program, which offers semester long classes to prepare low income women for work or college including instruction in computers, English, math, career development and leadership, and a GED program.

Wellspring House Executive Director Schwoyer has worked closely with the Paul and Phyllis Fireman Foundation in the development of the One Family Campaign which seeks to eliminate family homelessness in the Commonwealth and was a driving force behind the creation of the One Family Scholars program through which low income and formerly homeless mothers are provided college scholarships, career development advice, mentors, and leadership training so they can "forge a permanent path out of poverty for themselves and their families, breaking the cycle of generational poverty." An editorial in a Wellspring House newsletter describes the connection between Wellspring House and the Massachusetts Plan to End Family Homelessness which has emerged out of the federally sponsored Policy Academy on Family Homelessness. "One outstanding feature of the Plan is its emphasis on linking resources which too often operate without reference to each other...Making those links has been Wellspring's practice for twenty-five years. Wellspring has acted on another element in the Plan-prevention- with flexible funding and case management to help families remain housed when sickness or unemployment or violence threaten loss of the home."

In September, the Massachusetts Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness (ICCH), chaired by Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey concluded a series of regional community forums across the state held in collaboration with One Family Inc. to discuss implementation of the Massachusetts Plan to End Family Homelessness. The forums, which included participation by representatives of ICCH's member agencies and United States Interagency Council Regional Coordinator John O'Brien, offered elected officials, community leaders, and citizens an opportunity to learn more about the state plan and how to get involved in the implementation on a local level.

Project Homeless Connect efforts got a boost in Michigan this week when it was announced at the 1st Annual Michigan Homeless Summit (see related stories this issue) that the Michigan State Housing Development Agency in partnership with the Michigan Coalition to End Homelessness will provide planning grants to communities to support Connect events. Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids, and Detroit are among the communities nationwide that had already committed to the PHC innovation and these new planning grants are expected to generate participation by even more Michigan communities. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Regional Coordinator John O'Brien discussed building community support for Project Homeless Connect during a plenary session at the summit.

Planning for National Project Homeless Connect Week December 4-8, 2006 continues. Beginning next week, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness will convene a series of technical assistance conference calls for those communities that have committed to National Week.

For more information on Project Homeless Connect, please visit the Council's website at www.usich.gov. Any jurisdiction interested in participating in 2006 National Project Homeless Connect Week is encouraged to contact the Council at usichevents@usich.gov.

Michigan's newly launched statewide Campaign to End Homelessness (see related story this issue) includes a reinvigorated effort among several state agencies to collaborate and share resources in ways to benefit the homeless, which United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano has called "a national model of collaboration." Pictured here, top l-r, Michigan State Housing Development Authority Executive Director Michael DeVos, Michigan Department of Human Services Director Marianne Udow, Michigan Department of Community Health Director Janet Olszewski, Michigan Department of Corrections Director Director Patricia Caruso and Teresa Bingman from the Office of Governor Granholm at this week's Michigan Homeless Summit launching the statewide Campaign to End Homelessness.

SOAR is a federally initiated technical assistance initiative to promote systems change to assist people who are homeless successfully apply for SSI/SSDI benefits. SOAR will be spearheaded in Michigan through a collaborative effort of the State Housing Development Agency and Departments of Human Service and Community Health.

The Housing Resource Center is a pilot project developed by a partnership between the State Housing Development Agency, Department of Community Health, Department of Community Services and Detroit based service funders and agencies to link individuals and families who are homeless with special needs to vacant housing units in the cities of Detroit, Namtramck and Highland Park. Participants will be assisted with completing rental applications, applying for rental assistance and other entitlement benefits, receiving eviction prevention and other services provided by the partnering agencies.

The Statewide Taskforce for Youth Permanency and Services is led by the Director of the Department of Human Services and a Michigan Supreme Court Justice to develop recommendations to ensure every adolescent in foster care will have a life long connection to a caring adult, financial support for education and training, and access to affordable housing, health care, transportation, employment and emergency needs.

Bridges is a system spearheaded by the Department of Human Services that determines the programs and services for which Michigan residents qualify can be used to share information across systems and agencies to streamline client eligibility information and reduce the time to verify eligibility. DHS is currently rolling out Bridges in the first of three planned stages.

Interagency Service Teams (IST) are an effective service delivery model linking a community's key service partners in collaborative efforts to support consumer success and housing stability. ISTs are being implemented in multiple communities using a variety of funding sources and will be promoted across the state.

A Statewide Homeless Assistance Online Data Warehouse (SHADoW) will create a real time virtual research database comprised of de-identified client data from both public and nonprofit agencies allowing users to generate multiple analytical queries and reports on homeless populations, service delivery and needs via an interactive Web based interface.

A "Barrier Busting" Leadership Council comprised of representatives from each of the eight Supportive Housing and Homeless Regions, philanthropy, business, and state department representatives provides opportunities for statewide champions to discuss, strategize, and plan for the implementation of local 10-year plans as well as to provide direct feedback to state government department leaders on critical issues.