Entries by Mary Ann Priester

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Enhancing Homeless Services Data: Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s HMIS Transition to Clarity Human Services: Bitfocus

On July 10, 2023, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Continuum of Care implemented a new Homeless Management Information System (HMIS): Clarity Human Services: Bitfocus. The system launch is the culmination of a yearlong system improvement effort to strengthen and enhance the local homeless services data system.

This blog provides an overview of HMIS, the vendor selection process, the anticipated impact, and what to expect in the coming months.

July 20, 2023 by
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A Home For All: Budget Requests and Next Steps

On June 27, United Way of Greater Charlotte (United Way) released the A Home For All Implementation Plan Executive Summary outlining priorities and actionable steps to move Charlotte-Mecklenburg forward in our community’s shared effort to address affordable housing and homelessness.
Over the last nine months, meticulous work led to narrowing down the 99 initial priorities put forth in the A Home For All Strategic Framework to create an Implementation Plan. The plan outlines nine initiatives to move forward over the next four years. United Way, with support from Mecklenburg County, served as the Enduring Structure leading the work. To read more about the June 2023 release of the A Home For All Implementation Plan Executive Summary, click here.
This update will provide an overview of the initial budget request put forth by United Way and approved by the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, as well as next steps.

July 10, 2023 by
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Addressing LGBTQ+ Homelessness: Challenges, Disparities, and Promising Practices

In the United States, LGBTQ+ individuals experience higher rates of homelessness compared to non-LGBTQ+ individuals. This disparity is particularly pronounced among LGBTQ+ youth and LGBTQ+ people of color. Transgender individuals, in particular, face unique difficulties when seeking housing, and the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these challenges further. The overrepresentation of LGBTQ+ individuals in the homeless population can be attributed to various risk factors, including family rejection and discrimination. LGBTQ+ homelessness is also associated with heightened vulnerabilities to negative outcomes. It is crucial to create safe and affirming environments where LGBTQ+ individuals can access the support they need to break the cycle of homelessness.

This blog provides an overview of LGBTQ+ homelessness, challenges and gaps in services, and the efforts of local service providers such as the CCP LGBTQ+ Life Center and Time Out Youth. It also highlights current national efforts and promising practices that provide safe and affirming care to LGBTQ+ persons experiencing homelessness.

June 29, 2023 by
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Understanding Homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg: Exploring the Sheltered Homeless Census and One Number Data

Each year Continuums of Care (CoCs) across the United States conduct the HUD Point-in-Time (PIT) count, a nationwide effort focused on gathering data on homelessness. The primary goals of the PIT count are to estimate the total number of individuals experiencing homelessness and gain insights into their demographics and living conditions to inform policies and programs addressing homelessness.

The PIT count consists of two main components: the Sheltered Homeless Census and the Unsheltered Homeless Census. The Sheltered Homeless Census focuses on quantifying the number of individuals residing in emergency shelters, safe havens, or transitional housing on the night of the count. The Unsheltered Homeless Census aims to enumerate individuals who are experiencing homelessness and are living in places not intended for habitation, such as on the streets, in vehicles, or other unsheltered locations. Both components are necessary in order to capture individuals who access shelter services and those who do not.

The annual PIT Count is an important data source that can be used by communities to assess homelessness trends and inform policy and funding decisions but it has a number of limitations and is widely acknowledged as not capturing the full extent of homelessness in the United States. For this reason CoCs supplement PIT data with other data sources to gain a more comprehensive understanding of homelessness. Locally, One Number data, which is updated monthly, is a key data source that is utilized to better understand the current state of homelessness in Mecklenburg County.

A previous blog post provided in an in-depth description of the limitations of the PIT count and data from the 2023 Unsheltered Homeless Census. This blog focuses on the 2023 Sheltered Homeless Census and the community’s One Number.

June 15, 2023 by
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Housing First Training Strengthens Community’s Response to Homelessness and Improves Outcomes

The Housing First model is widely recognized as an effective and compassionate approach to addressing homelessness. It is an evidence-based model that has been shown to be successful in helping individuals achieve housing stability, improve their overall well-being, and reduce public costs associated with emergency services and institutional care. By recognizing housing as a fundamental right and addressing homelessness as a housing issue first, Housing First aims to create a solid foundation for individuals to achieve long-term stability.

In early April, the Mecklenburg County Community Support Services Housing Innovation and Stabilization Services team, in collaboration with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Continuum of Care, organized a two-day Housing First training led by Pathways to Housing PA. The training brought together over 100 local homeless services providers to develop a deeper understanding of the Housing First model and served as the kickoff event for a 12-week community training from Housing First University.

This blog provides an overview of the Housing First model, the training being provided by Housing First University, and the expected impact for people experiencing homelessness and the greater Charlotte-Mecklenburg community.

May 31, 2023 by
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Bridging the Gap: Addressing Unsheltered Homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg

The annual HUD Point-in-Time (PIT) count is a comprehensive effort conducted across the United States to gather data on homelessness. It consists of two components: the Sheltered Homeless Census which quantifies the number of individuals who were in an emergency shelter, safe haven, or transitional housing on the night of the PIT and the Unsheltered Homeless Census.

A future blog post will present data from the 2023 Sheltered Homeless Census.

This blog focuses on the 2023 Unsheltered Homeless Census, the state of unsheltered homelessness locally and nationally, strategic outreach, and the work underway to address unsheltered homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

May 17, 2023 by
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Three Takeaways From New Report on Homelessness and Incarceration in Charlotte-Mecklenburg

Today, May 4th, Mecklenburg County Community Support Services released the Homelessness Among the Incarcerated Population Integrated Data Report, authored by the Charlotte Urban Institute. This report examines the rate of and risk factors for homelessness among those experiencing incarceration in Mecklenburg County detention centers. This report is part of the Housing Instability & Homelessness Integrated Data Report Series.

This year’s Integrated Data Report looks different from prior years. The report is shorter and focused on the findings, but links readers to a methodology brief where they can learn more about how the study was conducted. This new format is intended to make the findings and implications of the study more accessible to the public. This blog post outlines the key findings from the report and what it means for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

May 3, 2023 by
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Reintroducing the Building Bridges Blog

Welcome back to the Building Bridges blog. During the past few months amidst submitting the 2022 HUD System Performance Measures, publishing the 2022 State of Housing Instability & Homelessness Report, and conducting the 2023 Point-In-Count, we have spent time reevaluating how this blog can best serve the community. The mission of the blog remains the same: highlight the important work being done in Charlotte-Mecklenburg in relation to housing instability, homelessness, and affordable housing; and connect local, regional, and national data, research, policy, and practice so that all stakeholders in the community can use it to drive advocacy, policymaking, funding allocation, and programmatic change.

April 20, 2023 by
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2022 State of Housing Instability & Homelessness Report Released Today

Today, February 23, 2023 Mecklenburg County Community Support Services  released the 2022 State of Housing Instability & Homelessness (SoHIH) Report. The annual SoHIH report synthesizes, analyzes, and shares local, state, and national data with the community for stakeholders. It serves as the foundation Charlotte-Mecklenburg utilizes to better understand gaps and inform policy and funding decisions and solutions.  This year is the first year in which Mecklenburg County Community Support Services’ Housing Innovation and Stabilization Services Division (HISS) fully authored the report. UNC Charlotte’s Urban Institute has provided consultation during this transition in order to maintain the intention and integrity of this report.  Going forward, the SOHIH will build on the success of previous reports produced by UNC Charlotte’s Urban Institute and will continue to provide data on the full housing continuum to the community.

This blog post outlines the key findings from the 2022 SoHIH and what it could mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

February 21, 2023 by