the new communities of opportunity model of intervention

NEW COMMUNITIES OF NEW COMMUNITIES OF OPPORTUNITY IN OPPORTUNITY IN NEW YORK CITYNEW YORK CITY

A PRESENTATION BY AURORA ZEPEDA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

THE INSTITUTE FOR CHILDREN AND POVERTY

Presentation will be available at WWW.ICPNY.ORGAZEPEDA@ICPNY.ORG

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

National Overview

• Homelessness in the United States

• Federal Spending for Low Income Housing Assistance

Homelessness in the United States

National Homeless Census:

• Between 2.3 and 3.5 million people experience homelessness a year

Family Homelessness:

• 41% of the homeless population are families with children. • They are the fastest growing segment of the homeless

population.• 1.3 million children experience homelessness a year

» 42% of all homeless children are under 6 years old.

Sources: http://www.huduser.org/publications/homeless/homelessness

Homeless Families in the United States

Sources: http://www.huduser.org/publications/homeless/homelessness

Female 84%Male 16%

Black non Hispanic 43%White non Hispanic 38%Hispanic 15%Other 4%

Under 25 yrs 26%25 to 45 yrs 74%

Not Married/Single 76%Married 23%

Less than High School 53%High School Diploma Only 21%More than High School 26%

Alcohol Use 18%Drug Use 20%Mental Health 36%

One 50%Two 27%Three 23%

Alcohol/Drug/ Mental Problem

Number of Times Homeless

Marital Status

Some characteristics of adults in homeless families:

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

Education Attainment

1987-2007 Federal Spending in All Low Income Assistance by Type of Assistance

• The increases for federal spending in low income assistance were primarily due to increases in spending on Medicaid and other income security.

• Federal spending in low income housing assistance has decreased from 14% of all low income assistance (1987) to 9% (2007).

Source: National Low Income Housing Coalition. "Changing priorities: The Federal Budget and Housing Assistance 1976-2005", October 2004.

$0

$50,000

$100,000

$150,000

$200,000

$250,000

$300,000

$350,000

$400,000

$450,000

Fiscal Year

Million

s of

Con

stan

t 2004 D

ollars

Housing Assistance Medicaid Social Services Food and Nutrition Other Income Security

Medicaid

Housing

US Dept of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): FY04-FY06 Decreased Funding for Low Income Housing Assistance Programs

• HUD’s funding for low income housing programs has decreased by a total of 3,297 million from FY04 to FY06

Source: Center on Budget and Policy Projections. " The Effects of the Federal Budget Squeeze on Low Income Housing Assistance" February 2007

For information on each of this low income housing programs visit http://www.hud.gov/

-$22-$30-$30

-$171

-$311)

-$779

-$928

($1,000)

($900)

($800)

($700)

($600)

($500)

($400)

($300)

($200)

($100)

$0

CDBG Public Housing HOME Section 8 Section 811 HOPWA HomelessAssistance

Type of Low Income Housing Program

Million

s of

Con

stan

t 2006 D

ollars

New York City Homeless Family

Shelter System Overview

Family Homelessness in New York City

• Since 1981 NYC has court mandated right to shelter. The city determines eligibility for emergency housing based on need.

• The New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS), is the city agency in charge of homeless services. All families with children apply for shelter services at one centralized intake building.

• Families that apply for emergency housing are placed in shelter until eligibility for temporary emergency housing is determined. This process usually takes 10 days.

• If the family is found eligible they remain in shelter until they find permanent housing. The average shelter stay is 325 days. Some stay as long as five years.

New York City Family Shelter Average Daily Census

• Family census has doubled from FY1998 to FY2007, increasing by 14% during the last fiscal year

• Currently an average of 8,000 families with children sleep in NYC shelters each night (15,000 children and 11,000 adults)*

Source: NYC Mayor’s Management Reports and NYC Department of Homeless Services

* Data includes families with no children; They account for only 16% of the homeless families population. The majority, 84% are families with children.

Average Daily Family Shelter Census

45084802

5029

5563

6985

8963 91098623

7933

9021

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

10000

FY98 FY99 FY00 FY01 FY02 FY03 FY04 FY05 FY06 FY07

Fiscal Year

Avera

ge N

um

ber

of

Fam

ilie

s/D

ay

FY04-FY06 Monthly Number of Family Applications and Number of Families Found Eligible for Shelter Services

• From FY04-FY06 the number of families found eligible for services has remained mostly constant.

• On average, 2,552 families apply for shelter every month and 885 (35%) of these family applications are found eligible for services.

• Families can apply for services multiple times. On average, 23% of families who apply every month are first- time applicants found eligible for services.

• If the underlying issues affecting these families are not addressed, the shelter becomes a revolving door.

*The chart represents all family applications. A family can be found ineligible and then be found eligible at a later application.

Source: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/html/home/home.shtml

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

Jul-0

4

Sep

-04

Nov

-04

Jan

-05

Mar

-05

May

-05

Jul-0

5

Sep

-05

Nov

-05

Jan

-06

Mar

-06

May

-06

Jul-0

6

Sep

-06

Nov

-06

Jan

-07

Mar

-07

May

-07

Num

ber

of

Fam

ily A

pplic

ati

ons

For

Em

erg

ency

Shelt

er

Total Family Applications Eligible for Emergency Shelter Total Family Applications Completed

The Shelter as a Community of Opportunity

A Powerful Tool to End Family Homelessness

Shelters and Learning: Education Attainment of Homeless Heads of Household

• 52% of homeless heads of household have no high school diploma.

• Lack of education limits homeless heads of household’s potential as well as their ability to promote their children's educational development.

• Shelters can become frontline vehicles to support literacy efforts.

• Adult education programs at the shelter can also provide homeless parents with basic tools needed for success at the workplace.

No High School Diploma

52%

High School Diploma/GED

Only31%

Some College/Vocational Trade Education

17%

N = 405 homeless heads of household residing in New York City shelters

Shelters and Learning: Homeless Children and Education

• In New York City over half of homeless children change schools at least once a year resulting in education setbacks.

• Many homeless children spend over an hour traveling to and from school, making it difficult to access after- school programs.

• Homelessness causes children profound educational setbacks as well as health and emotional problems

Educational Setbacks Among Homeless Children : New York City

13%

23%

54%

75%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Placed in Special Education

Repeat a Grade

Perform < Grade Level: Math

Perform < Grade Level:Reading

Ed

ucati

on

al

Se

tbacks

Percent of Homeless Children

Source: Institute For Children and Poverty N= 266

Shelters and Learning: The Shelter And After School Programs

• After-school programs offered at the shelter can help children make significant academic gains in less than six months. Success is even greater with ongoing enrollment.

• Homeless children attending after-school programs offered at the shelter have higher school attendance rates

Homeless Children Enrroled in After School Programs: Grade Improvement by Academic Subject

39%

49%

56%

58%

60%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Social Studies

Science

Math

Language Arts

Reading

Pe

rce

nt

of

Stu

de

nts

wit

h G

rad

e I

mp

rove

me

nt

Academic Subject

Source: Institute For Children and Poverty N =266

Shelters and Employment

• The majority (81%) of homeless heads of household are unemployed and a quarter of them have no work history.

• 76% of homeless heads of household with no work history have no high school diploma.

• Lack of education and limited work experienced are among the top self-reported reasons for unemployment among homeless heads of household

Employment Status of Homeless Heads of HouseholdIn New York City Shelters

No Work History24%

Unemployed with Paid Work History

57%

Currently Employed19%

Source: institute for Children and Poverty N= 421

Educational Attainment by Employment Category

38%45%

76%

38%33%

21%23% 21%

3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Currently Employed Unemployed- Work History Unemployed- No Work History

No High School Diploma High school/GED Some College/Vocational Trade Education

Shelters and Employment

Most homeless heads of household lack the basic requirements needed to access job training programs offered to public assistance recipients. Job readiness and job training programs offered at the shelter can target the specific needs of homeless heads of household and give them the tools necessary to access employment opportunities.

Be job-ready Has virtually no work experienceHave a high scool diploma Has a tenth grade educationRead at an 8th grade level or better Reads at the 6th grade levelPossess basic skills, such as typing Has few employable job skillsProvide their own daycare Has limited access to daycareHave no substance abuse history Often has a substance abuse historyProvide their own transportation Cannot afford transportation costHave a permanent address Does not have a permanent address

Source: Institute for Children and Poverty

Qualifications Needed for Public Assistance Recipients to Participate in a Typical Job Trainig Program vs. the Typical Homeless Head of Household

The typical job training program requires that the candidate: The typical homeless head of household:

Shelters and Foster Care

Comparison of Homeless Parents: With and Without a Foster Care History

Physically or Sexually Abused as a Child 41%* 13%

Age First Homeless 20 years* 28 years

Homeless as a Result of Violence 23%* 15%

Homeless More Than Once 47%* 24%

Age First Gave Birth 19 years 20 years

Have Not Completed High School 59% 54%

*Significant at the .05 Level

Source: Institute for Children and Poverty N=446

Homeless Parents Foster Care History No Foster Care History

With a third of shelter residents having spend a part of their childhood in foster care and some moving directly from the foster care system to the shelter system, there is a need to prevent their children from doing the same. Using targeted programs, the shelter can help families stay together and achieve long term stability.

Homeless parents with a foster care history are twice as more likely to have repeated incidences of homelessness. They also tend to become homeless at a younger age.

Shelters and Teen Pregnancy

• Almost half of all homeless mothers became pregnant with their first child before they reach 18 years of age.

• Teen pregnancy prevents some homeless mothers from completing high school and entering the labor force.

• The shelter can offer young mothers an opportunity to complete their education and access job readiness, employment training and parenting skills workshops. This allows them to develop the necessary skills to make good parenting decisions and manage their own lives.

Age When Homeless Women Became Pregnant With Their First Child

47%

31%

22%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

< 18 yrs 19-21 yrs 22 yrs >

Age Became Pregnant

% o

f H

om

ele

ss W

om

en

Source: Institute for Children and Poverty N=323

Shelters and Domestic Violence

• Due to scarcity of domestic violence shelters, victims of domestic violence are regularly placed in homeless family shelters.

• Domestic violence is now among the top reasons for family homelessness, accounting for approximately 19% of all families that enter shelter.

• Between 20 and 50% of all homeless parents have experienced domestic violence at some point of their lives.

• The shelter gives us an opportunity to tackle domestic violence in a safe and nurturing environment while giving these families the services they need to address their emotional and physical health.

Source: New York City Independent Budget Office: City Spending in Domestic Violence: A Review, June 2007. Available at www.ibo.nyc.ny.us

Shelters and Children’s Health

In New York City almost three quarters of all homeless families rely on emergency rooms and walk-in clinics for their medical care. Shelters can provide families with the primary care services they need for staying healthy, through offering on-site medical services or by forming partnerships with local health providers and other community organizations.

Health problems among homeless children: New York City

Among homeless children:

•20% have asthma•46% experienced a decline in health with the onset of homelessness

Compared to non-homeless children, homeless children suffer:

•Three times as many gastrointestinal disorders• Five times as many diarrhea infections• 50% more ear infections• Twice as many hospitalizations

Source: Institute for Children and Poverty

Concluding Thoughts

A National Problem with a Local Solution

A National Problem

• There is no national agenda to end family homelessness. – Available federal funding targets the chronically homeless--almost

exclusively single adults--leaving local governments with few resources to address family homelessness.

• There is a limited supply of low income housing.– Continuous cuts in federal funding for low income housing

assistance programs exacerbates the problem and leaves shelters as the only affordable housing option for very low income families.

A Local Solution

• Shelter infrastructure should be used as a tool to address the multiplicity of homeless family issues.– Local government can successfully partner with the non-profit

and philanthropic sectors to target resources.

• Local government and non-profit providers must address family homelessness as a poverty issue, not simply a housing issue.

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.