Transformative Edge of Reform
Youth Support Efforts on the Transformative Edge of Reform
There has been an attempt to push some of the supportive services to the edge of transformation by employing young people to provide the services, offer more flexible and direct financial support to youth and their families, and connecting housing directly to educational supports and/or health care.
Examples of Youth Support Efforts on the Transformative Edge of Reform
Providing dedicated and supported employment opportunities for youth with lived experience within homelessness programs. These positions can further a youth’s career while improving access and engagement with services for other youth who can see their identities within the provider. YHDP has helped to increase these types of funded positions across the country but there are still far too few and they are often still lacking support within the agencies they are working.
Subsidized wages/job incentive programs that allow youth to take entry-level jobs to gain employment experience while still making a living wage.
Supported housing connected to higher education. Several communities around the country have created supported housing programs for youth experiencing homelessness that is directly linked to educational opportunities. These include free-year round dorm rooms on university campuses and free housing for youth and families that are connected to high schools around the country.
McKinney-Vento Homeless Student funding for housing. The state of Illinois is testing a new innovation within McKinney-Vento program in high schools that will allow for funds that are usually dedicated to transporting youth experiencing homelesness across town to their high school to be used for direct housing support for youth and their families.
Connecting health care and housing. There has been movement across the country to utilize health care savings for high cost users to house individuals. This has shown promising results in sharing the cost of the housing across the system and in improving access to quality health care and housing for some of the most vulnerable.