Anthropology News • May 2010

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I N F O C U S

inquiring specifically about different language abilities) are better at iden-tifying people who need multilin-gual materials, might convince the Census to make changes. Census Bureau researchers recognize that the meaning of “at home” may be variable, especially for people residing in group quarters and immigrants, suggesting another opportunity. Second, if agencies that utilize Census data recognize the shortcomings of that data, they can request necessary improve-ments. Working with agencies and congressional allies to help them see a need for data on multilingualism could lead to new mandates. Third, shifts in dominant discourses and an increased appreciation of multilingualism could lead to the language abilities of the population being seen as important character-istics worth measuring. Of course, these three avenues for change exist in a mutually reinforcing rela-tionship. Just as the current ques-tions reflect and reinforce hege-monic ideologies, changing those questions both requires and would promote greater understanding and valuing of multilingualism and multilingual people.

Jennifer Leeman (jleeman@gmu.edu) is associate professor of Hispanic linguistics at George Mason University. Her recent research includes studies on the history of ideologies of language and race in the US Census, the represen-tation of Spanish in the racializa-tion of Latinos, and the sociopolitics of language education in the US.

Languagecontinued from page 7

Enumerating Homeless PopulationsAn Introduction to Point-in-Time Counts

Jack Garrett Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County

The main reason to conduct a census is to find out how many people there are in a specific popu-lation. Enumeration is also an opportunity to learn more about the group being counted, which can provide useful data informing the counting process itself. The official US census is conducted every ten years and attempts to count every man, woman and child living in the US, including homeless indi-viduals and families, a population whose enumeration poses partic-ular difficulties. Despite targeted efforts to include homeless people in the official census, undercounts remain a continual challenge. There is thus a need to conduct a more frequent measure of this subpopu-lation, which is addressed by a bien-nial point-in-time (PIT) count of homeless people mandated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). This count is conducted by local Continuum of Care (CoC) programs that receive HUD funding to provide services and shelter to the homeless in their communities.

CoCs do not receive additional funding to conduct these required counts, and methodologies and results vary depending on available resources. Strategies for enumer-ating homeless populations are influenced by available funding, geography, population size and environment. Methodologies range from tally counts to surveys with de-duplication sheets. All strate-gies achieve a count of the popula-tion; some methodologies are more accurate than others. HUD recog-nizes the difficulties in counting this often hidden population and provides a guide to offer direc-tion for CoCs. HUD also recognizes the point-in-time enumeration is almost always an undercount, as it is impossible to identify and include all locations where homeless indi-viduals reside in a 24-hour period.

One Local StrategyThe strategy employed by Hillsborough County, Florida is similar to that used in other regions

and municipalities around the nation. Our methodology requires hundreds of volunteers to go into the field during a 24-hour period to collect basic information from homeless persons, which will allow for an unduplicated count. It is the responsibility of the PIT organizers to identify and locate encamp-ments, shelters and other places where homeless populations reside and spend their time.

The most recent point-in-time enumeration for Hillsborough County occurred in February 2009, with the goal being to count all homeless individuals and fami-lies—defined as persons living on the streets or staying in shel-ters—in every city, community and unincorporated area of the county. This project utilized a HUD-based methodology that created a unique identifier for each person, to allow for an unduplicated count, which was as comprehensive as possible. In addition to collecting infor-mation for HUD, Hillsborough County also utilizes these interac-tions to collect information that the State of Florida uses to understand the homeless population.

In an effort to gather the same information from each person, volunteers are equipped with a two-page questionnaire that requests basic demographic infor-mation (such as age, gender, ethnicity, marital status and veteran service) and information specific to the homeless population. Details gathered include length of time a person has been homeless, the state and city where they became homeless, and what caused them to become homeless. We create the

unique identifiers using first and last initials, year of birth, number of children, and zip code where the person spent the prior night. After the PIT count has been conducted, volunteers and coalition staff enter all the data into a database to sort for duplication and begin analysis.

Findings and ImpactsFindings from the 2009 point-in-time count provide us with vital information and help dispel

some misunderstandings about the homeless population in Hillsborough County. Although many assume that all homeless persons are unemployed and have been homeless for an extended period of time, the results show 41% of the measured population is experiencing homelessness for the first time, 40% have some kind of income, and 25% have income through employment. There is also a popular perception that home-less people migrate to warmer climates, like Florida, during the winter months. However, results from the PIT enumeration show 88% of the homeless population in Hillsborough County became homeless while residing in Florida. Another common perception is that the homeless are predomi-nately alcoholics, drug addicts and mentally ill. The findings show 81% do not have a diagnosed substance issue and 63% do not suffer from mental illness. Other findings from the PIT count show 42% of the homeless population have been homeless for more than one month, but less than one year, 22% have been homeless for less than a month and 25% have been home-less more than four times.

Why is point–in-time enumer-ation necessary? Findings from the count are an integral part of our CoC’s planning efforts and provide information on the home-less population that is central to developing appropriate housing policy and homeless services. The findings are used internally to monitor the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County’s prog-ress in ending homelessness, as

well as to identify gaps and needs remaining in the local Continuum of Care system. The information also allows local, state and federal governments to make informed decisions regarding programs and services for the homeless popula-tion. Additionally, the findings help overcome stereotypes and misper-ceptions about homeless people and the PIT process allows indi-viduals and institutions within the community a chance to become

involved in an effort to understand a segment of their own popula-tion—a segment that continues to grow as our economy struggles and more families face challenges with employment and housing.

Jack Garrett is an applied anthro-pologist originally from California who works with homeless popula-tions. He earned a master’s degree from CSU Long Beach and currently works for the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County. He has conducted homeless surveys and enumerations in rural and urban environments on both coasts.

C O M M E N T A R Y