Understanding Student Homelessness and Support Services

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As we begin the 2023-2024 school year, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) already has 2,369 students who are enrolled in McKinney-Vento services. CMS closed out the 2022-2023 school year with 4,815 homeless students, a 15% increase from the 4,206 students (including Pre-K and younger siblings) who experienced homelessness and housing instability during the 2021-2022 school year. Homelessness has a significant impact on the physical and mental health of children, often resulting in diminished social-emotional and academic well-being. Children experiencing homelessness and housing instability are at risk for higher rates of school absenteeism, poorer performance in math and reading assessments, school suspensions, and have an elevated risk of high school drop out.

This blog provides an overview of student homelessness and the services that are in place to support them.

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Planning for System-Wide Landlord Engagement

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Beginning in August 2022, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Continuum of Care (CoC) engaged with Erica Snyder Consulting to conduct a community assessment to identify current system-wide landlord engagement practices and to facilitate a community-engaged planning process . The goals of this effort were two-fold: increase access to available rental units and develop a strategy for targeted landlord recruitment and retention. The assessment and planning process involved meeting with homeless services housing providers and partners currently engaging with landlords to determine strengths and areas for growth in the existing system. Initial findings were presented at a community meeting led by the CoC Landlord Engagement Workgroup. In December 2022, CoC partners came together for two half-day sessions to discuss creating a CoC-wide vision for a landlord engagement system. This blog provides an overview of the community assessment and planning process and outlines recommendations for improved system-wide landlord engagement.

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A Home For All: Implementation Plan Overview

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This month, United Way of Greater Charlotte (United Way) released the A Home For All Implementation Plan. Building on the priorities identified in the Strategic Framework, the Implementation Plan outlines which priorities to advance first in order to address housing instability and homelessness across the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area.

This Plan represents the culmination of months of rigorous planning, research, and community-wide collaboration. Over the last year, meticulous work has facilitated narrowing down the 99 initial priorities put forth in the A Home For All Strategic Framework to create this Implementation Plan. The plan outlines nine initiatives to move forward over the next four years. United Way, with support from Mecklenburg County, serves as the Enduring Structure leading this work.

To read the A Home For All Implementation Plan, click here.

This blog post will provide an overview of the Plan as well as key takeaways.

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HUD System Performance Measures: Evaluating Progress in Ending Homelessness

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The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act mandates that Continuums of Care (CoCs) evaluate their performance as a coordinated system to assess their system’s collective work towards preventing and ending homelessness. To that end, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has developed seven System Performance Measures. Charlotte-Mecklenburg is required to report performance on six of these measures to HUD annually. The measures are not only a part of the selection criteria for CoC funding awards but can and should be used locally to monitor progress and drive system improvement.  Over the next several months, the Building Bridges Blog will examine local performance on each System Performance Measure and explore what these measures and local performance mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

This blog provides an overview of the HUD System Performance Measures and presents information and data on System Performance Measure One.

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Addressing Older Adult Homelessness: Mecklenburg County’s Hotel Conversion Housing Project

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In May 2020, at the onset of COVID-19, Mecklenburg County opened a hotel to provide a safe, non-congregate setting for older adults who were experiencing homelessness and had  health conditions that made them high risk for morbidity if they contracted COVID-19.  In 2022, Mecklenburg County invested $13.6 million dollars of American Rescue Plan Act funding to buy and renovate a 90-unit hotel to provide permanent, affordable, supportive housing to serve this vulnerable population. Phase One of the renovations were recently completed and on June 29th, the 29 remaining residents of the hotel were relocated to fully furnished apartments in the hotel conversion project.

This blog provides an overview of the state and nature of older adult homelessness and what’s being done locally to address the housing needs of this growing population.

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

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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.

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A Home For All: Budget Requests and Next Steps

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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.

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Addressing LGBTQ+ Homelessness: Challenges, Disparities, and Promising Practices

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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.

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Understanding Homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg: Exploring the Sheltered Homeless Census and One Number Data

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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.

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Housing First Training Strengthens Community’s Response to Homelessness and Improves Outcomes

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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.

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