National Transitional Jobs Network Conference Focuses on Employment Solutions to Homelessness

 

Melissa Young of the National Transitional Jobs Network blogs about last month's national conference, where 300 people gathered to discuss best practices in employment solutions for individuals facing employment barriers, including homelessness. Representatives from three cities - Seattle, Miami, and Phoenix - discussed their approaches to connecting homeless and at-risk job seekers to employment. Discover the seven core principles to serving homeless individuals seeking employment on our blog. 

 

Nonprofit Quarterly Identifies Housing First as Solution to Homelessness, Pushes for Nonprofit Advocacy

 

Earlier this month, Rick Cohen of Nonprofit Quarterly responded to the rise in homelessness in New York City with a call to nonprofits to increase their affordable-housing advocacy efforts. The article pointed to permanent supportive housing as the solution for reducing homelessness and congratulated Funders Together's members for their efforts in supporting successful Housing First programs. 

Read the article.

 

Office of Multifamily Housing Programs Releases Section 811 Project Rental Assistance Demonstration Notice of Funding Availability 

 

On May 15, HUD's Office of Multifamily Housing Programs launched its Section 811 Demonstration Project, which was authorized under the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of 2010. The Melville Charitable Trust, a member of Funders Together, was a major force behind passing the bill to address the housing crisis experienced by millions of extremely low income people with disabilities.

 

The Project Rental Assistance Demonstration Program will grant $85 million in funding to housing agencies with state Medicaid and Health and Human Services Agency partners. This funding will outreach to extremely low income persons with disabilities and provide long-term project-based rental assistance contracts for approximately 2,800 affordable housing units. HUD plans to award funds to between 9 and 16 state housing agencies. The deadline to apply is July 31. For more information, visit: FY2012 Section 811 PRA Demo.

  

Champions for Change Honors Efforts to End Youth Homelessness

 

Last week, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness announced Champions of Change, a celebration of the innovative work conducted by individuals, businesses, and organizations to end youth and child homelessness. The event, orchestrated in partnership with the White House Office of Public Engagement, the Department of Health and Human Services, and HUD, will take place July 12 at the White House.

 

SPECIAL REQUEST FROM FTEH: Send Us Your HEARTH Activities

 

As you may know, Funders Together is preparing a series of briefs for philanthropic organizations on the HEARTH Act and its implications for local grantmakers.  There will be five or six of these short papers, each covering a different topic and featuring two or three examples of key investments, educational, or leadership roles by the philanthropic community. We want to feature a range of funder types, locations, and sizes of investment.  If you are involved in your community in any of the following (or other related) activities you want to share, please let me us know. The topic areas are:

1) Changing to a Housing Crisis Response System: seeking examples of funders involved in helping their communities prepare for change through supporting training about HEARTH and Opening Doors and their implications, helping  providers attend conferences, sponsoring site visits in other communities, funding local planning efforts, and actively participating in or leading local planning and systems change efforts.

2) Coordinated Entry and Assessment: seeking examples of investments in the development and operation of coordinated entry/access points--including hotlines or access centers, assessment tools,  training, evaluation, and improvement--and ways funders are encouraging or mandating participation by their grantees in these systems, or requiring HMIS data as part of their application award or evaluation process.

3) Expanding Rapid Rehousing: seeking examples of investments in pilot programs of full-scale rapid rehousing programs, especially for specific subpopulations such as veterans, ex-offenders, DV survivors, etc.;  investments in staff training, development of tools, coordination, evaluation of efforts; and small grants or in-kind support for individuals and families moving into their own housing.

4) Retooling Transitional Housing: seeking examples of support for providers and communities investigating ways to repurpose transitional housing, including support for work with boards, cities/counties, other funders, and examples of ways funders are changing their expectations of TH providers in their own grantmaking.

 

If you are involved in one or more of these activities and would like us to consider featuring your effort, please email Anne Miskey by June 15 with a brief explanation of  the effort or investment, including if it's a grant, who the recipient is, the period it covers, and the amount,  and feel free to attach any additional documents.

 

Grantmakers for Effective Organizations Study of Philanthropic Practice

 

Last month, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations released a study of the attitudes and practices of grantmaking foundations entitled, "Is Grantmaking Getting Smarter? A National Study of Philanthropic Practice." 

The study reveals that grantmakers with strategies in place for listening to and learning from grantees are more likely to boost nonprofit success. GEO also examines the impact of grantmaking trends since 2008.

Download the full publication

 

Washington Families Fund Case Study   

 

Building Changes has published a case study on Washington Families Fund (WFF), the first statewide program funded by public and private dollars to effectively support providers serving homeless families. Since its founding in 2004, WFF has assisted 1,750 families and more than 3,000 children.

United Way Toolkit

 

At the beginning of May, the U.S. Intergovernmental Council on Homelessness launched a toolkit for its United Way partners based on a modification of Funders Together's funding principles. Each of the following philosophies links to resources from local United Ways exemplifying USICH's guidelines for preventing and ending homelessness. 

 

On our blog, board chair David Wertheimer urges philanthropy to take the lead in joining multiple mainstream systems serving the same vulnerable populations. Using vulnerable families as an example, he demonstrates the divide between the child welfare system and family homelessness assistance. In partnering with the nonprofit sector and government agencies, Wertheimer explains that funders are in a position to facilitate cross-systems partnerships and ultimately produce better, more efficient outcomes for families that lack stability. 

Read the entire blog post

 

NAEH Congressional Briefing and Brief: Ending Family Homelessness with Rapid Re-Housing    

 

On May 17, the National Alliance to End Homelessness hosted a Congressional briefing entitled, "Rapid Re-Housing: Ending Family Homelessness." Panelists included Nan Roman of the Alliance, Matt Minkevitch of Salt Lake City's The Road Home, Nan Stoops of Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Kelly Thompson of Davenport, IA's Humility of Mary Shelter, Inc., and Frank Johnson, a former client of the Community Council for the Homeless at Friendship Place in Washington, DC.

 

Webinar on Ending Veteran Homelessness

Hosted by the National Housing Conference  

June 13 | 2 p.m. ET

  

The "Homeless Veterans and Rental Housing: Supportive Housing Programs to End Homelessness" webinar will analyze housing challenges specific to the homeless veteran population, and cover examples of model federal and state assistance programs. Panelists include the Alliance's Vice President for Programs and Policy, Steve Berg; Brad Bridwell with Cloudbreak Communities; Baylee Crone with the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans; and Ethan Handelman with the National Housing Conference.

Register now

   

Affordable Housing with Services Study Tour

Hosted by Grantmakers in Aging

September 10-15 |

Boston, MA 

& Burlington, VT

 

Grantmakers In Aging, along with LeadingAge Center for Applied Research and International Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, has organized a tour of five Northeast senior housing providers who have been at the forefront of policy shaping. Part of the tour will 

 

In addition to learning about services and supports, there will be funders-only sessions covering the role of foundations and other grantmakers in fostering affordable housing for older adults.

Register by August 1

 

National Conference on Ending Homelessness

Hosted by the National Alliance to End Homelessness

July 16-18 | Renaissance Washington D.C. Hotel 

 

Despite the strides we have made toward ending homelessness, there is still much to accomplish. The National Alliance to End Homelessness invites you to share your stories, discover new approaches to preventing and ending homelessness, and build strategic partnerships at its annual conference. Workshops cover a breadth of topics, including: Re-tooling Your Transitional Housing Program, Rapid Re-Housing for Survivors of Domestic Violence, Health Care Reform and New Strategies to Address Chronic Homelessness, and Improving the Crisis Response for Youth. 

Funders Together executive director, Anne Miskey, will moderate a panel on collaborative funding strategies.

 

For workshop descriptions, take a look at the detailed conference agenda. 

Register now for a reduced fee.

 

In conjunction with the conference, the Alliance is holding its 22nd Annual Awards ceremony on July 17 at 7:30 p.m. at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. The conference fee does not include the cost for attending the award ceremony, but you can purchase tickets here.  

 

Email allison@funderstogether.org if you plan to attend. 

  

Funders Together Reception

July 17 4:30-6:00 p.m. 

 

We will be hosting a special reception for funders at the Alliance's national conference. Look for more details in our June bulletin. Email allison@funderstogether.org if you plan to attend. 

  

National Zarrow Mental Health Symposium & Mental Health America Annual Conference

Sponsored by the Zarrow Foundations

September 19-21 l Tulsa, OK Convention Center

 

This conference features programs and research 

that address housing, recovery, and community supports for people living with mental illness.  Discussion will focus on innovative approaches to the development of safe, decent, and affordable housing, and best practice models of support services needed to sustain recovery. 

Register now