Spotlight on Youth Homelessness

1. Main Themes of Today's Podcast: 
   • The state of youth homelessness in America
   • Disproportionate impact on marginalized youth groups
   • The role of the foster care system in youth homelessness
   • Local efforts to prevent youth homelessness, focusing on Kids In Crisis program
2. Key Actions and Commitments: 
   • Kids In Crisis provides 24/7 emergency shelter and crisis intervention for youth under 18
   • Offering comprehensive services including counseling, education, and family reunification
   • Operating a 24/7/365 Crisis Helpline for immediate support and referrals
   • Providing all services at no cost to youth or their families
3. Important Considerations: 
   • Youth homelessness is likely undercounted due to "hidden homelessness"
   • Disproportionate impact on youth of color, LGBTQI+ youth, and those with disabilities
   • The foster care system as a significant pipeline into youth homelessness
   • Need for trauma-informed, strength-based approaches in addressing youth homelessness
4. Conclusion: 
   • Prevention is key in addressing youth homelessness
   • Programs like Kids In Crisis demonstrate effective local efforts
   • 90% of youth served by Kids In Crisis return safely to their families
   • Ongoing support and aftercare are crucial for long-term success
   • Addressing youth homelessness requires a comprehensive, compassionate approach that addresses immediate needs while working towards long-term solutions and family reunification when possible

Transcript

Spotlight on Youth Homelessness

Oct 8, 2024

(0:00) Okay, so picture this you're at like a huge concert right like a massive stadium show totally packed (0:05) Yeah, I beat that energy seriously, and it's shoulder-to-shoulder (0:09) with people over (0:11) 700,000 Wow now imagine all those people are kids. Okay, and (0:17) Every single one is experiencing homelessness. Oh, wow.Yeah, it's uh, it's pretty heavy stuff (0:22) That's the reality though facing young people across the country at least according to this report (0:27) kids in crisis (0:30) Spotlight on youth homelessness. Mm-hmm, and that's what we're diving into today. It's a you know (0:36) Tough stuff to think about right, but I'm really interested to see what they have to say about solutions because thankfully there are some yeah (0:42) And what's really striking about this report is how clearly it lays out how big of a problem this really is (0:47) Yeah, that's seven hundred thousand number.Oh, yeah, that's likely just the tip of the iceberg, right? (0:52) And they hit us with another number two thirty four thousand seven hundred. Okay, that's for the Department of Housing and Urban Development's point-in-time (0:58) Count right basically, it's how many young people were counted as homeless on a single night in 2023 (1:03) Yeah, but even they admit that number is probably way off (1:07) It's a huge undercount like trying to count how many grains of sand are on the beach exactly so much of youth homelessness is hidden (1:14) The report actually uses that word hidden (1:17) We're talking about kids on friends couches in motels, right or even worse (1:22) You know in unsafe situations this hidden homelessness (1:26) Really hits home when you see the numbers reported by schools. Oh, yeah (1:30) Over 1.2 million students were identified as experiencing homelessness (1:35) Just in the 2021 2022 school year Wow.And again, that's just the ones we know about right? (1:42) These are young people very vulnerable incredibly vulnerable. And when we say youth, it's not just teenagers, right? (1:48) Right, this report looks at individuals up to age 24 (1:52) Wow, okay capturing those challenges young adults face trying to become independent and it's not just any young people facing the biggest challenges (2:01) Certain groups are hit way harder than others. Yeah, the report is very clear about that, right? (2:05) It's not just about how many people it's about who those people are (2:09) Exactly.We're talking about disproportionate impacts on youth of color (2:14) LGBTQI plus youth youth with disabilities English learners (2:18) Young people who are pregnant or parenting, right? (2:22) They're all facing huge systemic challenges that make them way more likely to experience homelessness than their peers (2:29) It's rough and I think it's easy to get caught up in all the numbers (2:33) Yeah, but we got to remember these are real people with real stories (2:37) Absolutely going through unimaginable hardship and it's not like this just happens out of nowhere (2:41) The report calls out the foster care system specifically (2:46) Almost half of the youth aging out of foster care end up experiencing homelessness by age 26. That's a system (2:53) That's failing totally and it needs to be addressed. But on a lighter note the report does mention some reasons for optimism (3:00) Okay, do you remember the beginning of the pandemic when everyone was predicting this huge surge in homelessness? (3:05) Yeah, it felt like we were all bracing for the worst totally.Yeah, but that's not actually what happened. That's true (3:10) Yeah, what happened? (3:11) Well, the report says that all those interventions they put in place like the eviction prevention programs the rental assistance direct financial assist (3:19) Yeah, all that stuff (3:21) Actually worked. Yeah, those were huge.They actually prevented a spike in homelessness (3:25) So even in a crisis, we were able to keep people housed (3:28) Yeah, and it makes you think if we can pull that off during a pandemic, right? Why can't we do that all the time? (3:35) Exactly, which is a perfect segue into what I found most interesting (3:39) The reports focus on prevention (3:42) Because it's one thing to respond to homelessness, but what about stopping it before it even starts? Yeah get ahead of it (3:48) That's what they're talking about. And that's a huge shift in thinking that this reports pushing for. Yeah, it's about moving beyond just (3:55) Managing homelessness and moving towards actively preventing it.But before we get into all of that, okay (4:00) Let's look at what's already being done. The report actually highlights a case study about this organization called kids in crisis (4:07) They're doing some really impressive work when it comes to youth homelessness intervention. Okay, so they're really on the front lines of this (4:14) They're out there doing the work.So kids in crisis, huh? What is it? They're doing that's working. So well (4:19) Well, one thing is they're not just doing one thing, you know (4:23) They've got all these different programs all designed to meet young people right where they're at (4:28) So what kind of programs are we talking here? They've got (4:32) 247 crisis intervention emergency shelter counseling Oh Wow family reunification efforts aftercare support (4:39) It's the whole package. They don't just help a kid through a crisis and then send them on their way, you know, that's amazing (4:45) It's really about those long-term solutions, right? And speaking of long-term (4:50) The report mentioned a 90% success rate with their family reunification efforts.It's incredible (4:56) That's got to be one of their most successful programs. What's their secret? How are they getting families back together? (5:01) So effectively one thing the report highlighted was their focus on what they call a strength based approach (5:08) Okay, what's that mean instead of focusing on the problems they focus on building skills and resilience in a young person (5:16) And when it comes to family reunification, they don't just throw families back together and hope for the best, right? (5:22) They actually offer family counseling to address those root causes that might have led to the young person running away (5:28) Or being asked to leave in the first place (5:29) So it's really about giving both the young person and their family (5:32) The tools they need to rebuild those relationships exactly (5:36) But what about the times when going home just isn't an option? Well, that's where their aftercare program comes in (5:43) Okay, so even if family reunification isn't possible for whatever reason right kids in crisis is still there to provide that ongoing support (5:51) So they're not just on their own again. No, we're talking about continued counseling (5:57) Connections to housing resources job training wow (6:00) Everything a young person needs to build a future for themselves, even if they've had a rough start (6:05) It sounds like they really do cover it all.Mm-hmm, but it's not all (6:09) Long-term support is it? I mean they're also dealing with those immediate situations, right? Exactly that 2047 crisis hotline (6:17) Tell me more about that. Yeah, it's a lifeline that hotline. Yeah available 24 7 365 (6:24) Connects young people and families with immediate support and resources (6:28) And it's not just some local number either (6:30) It's actually recognized by the national runaway safe line and the national human trafficking hotline.Wow (6:35) Okay, so they're a big deal. It really goes to show you this isn't just a local problem, right? (6:39) This is affecting people everywhere (6:41) But let's go back to kids in crisis's approach for a sec (6:45) The report mentioned something about them being a state licensed program. Oh, right.Yeah. What does that even mean? (6:51) It means they're held to a really high standard, okay (6:55) To be licensed they have to meet certain requirements when it comes to things like safety (7:02) Staffing the services they provide so it's kind of a guarantee that they're providing (7:05) Quality care, which is obviously super important when you're dealing with young people in these situations. Yeah, no kidding (7:10) It's good to know there are those safeguards in place.Yeah, but this is bigger than just kids in crisis, right? (7:15) They're just one piece of the puzzle. The report mentioned something called a continuum of care (7:21) And uh the youth homelessness demonstration project (7:25) I'm, not really sure what those are. So the continuum of care is like this local planning body (7:30) Okay that coordinates housing and services for anyone experiencing homelessness, okay, including young people (7:37) So being part of that means kids in crisis is plugged into this whole network of resources and support within their community (7:43) Gotcha, and then the youth homelessness demonstration project is a federal initiative.So it comes from the top down (7:50) That's focused on coming up with and testing new solutions to youth homelessness. So they're really on the cutting edge of this (7:56) Exactly always learning and adapting. This is really incredible.I mean this deep dive into kids in crisis is really inspiring (8:04) It's a powerful example of what's possible when we stop just reacting to homelessness and actually try to fix the root of the problem (8:11) Which brings us back to those prevention strategies we were talking about earlier (8:14) Exactly because as great as kids in crisis is we need to stop homelessness from happening in the first place (8:21) Yeah, it's really amazing to see an organization like that (8:24) Doing so much good. It is but like you said just one piece of the puzzle (8:29) Exactly, and it's easy to get caught up in the details of these individual programs, right? But the report's really clear about one thing (8:37) Prevention is key. We've got to stop this problem before it even starts (8:41) And that takes us right back to those pandemic era interventions exactly because those measures they took weren't just about reacting to the pandemic (8:48) They actually offer a blueprint for preventing homelessness in the first place (8:51) Yeah, those programs were surprisingly effective right and they weren't even designed with homelessness in mind (8:57) It makes you think if we can do it during a pandemic (9:00) Why not all the time just imagine if families had that kind of support before they're even in crisis exactly.It's about being proactive (9:07) Right instead of reactive and this report doesn't just say what to do (9:12) It also explains why those solutions work right because we can't just address the symptoms, right? (9:18) We need to get to the root of the issue (9:20) The systemic problems that make young people more vulnerable to homelessness in the first place. So what are we talking about? (9:25) What are some of those root causes? Well, we're talking about poverty discrimination (9:30) Lack of access to education and job opportunities. Oh, okay (9:34) So these are big problems they are but that doesn't mean we can't solve them.So what can we do? (9:39) What are some actual steps we can take? (9:41) Well, the report really emphasizes things like affordable housing initiatives (9:46) Expanding mental health services. Okay, and it specifically calls out the need for more support for young people transitioning out of foster care (9:55) Which makes sense considering those numbers we talked about earlier exactly (9:58) These kids need extra support and we need systems that set them up for success not failure (10:03) So, how do we make that happen because this is bigger than any one person or organization, right? Absolutely it takes all of us working together (10:11) government programs community organizations (10:14) Individuals where we even begin. Well, the report actually offers some concrete steps we can take.Okay, like what it talks about supporting (10:22) Affordable housing initiatives in our communities. Okay, donating our time or money to organizations that are already doing great work on the ground (10:31) So like kids in crisis exactly and advocating for policies that address the root causes of youth homelessness (10:39) So getting politically active. Yeah contacting our representative exactly because at the end of the day (10:45) This is about creating a society where every young person has a real chance to thrive (10:51) You know, it's tough to hear these stories and not feel overwhelmed.Yeah, but looking at this report (10:56) It really does give me some hope me too (10:58) It's a reminder that even though these problems are huge and complicated, right? (11:04) There are people out there fighting to change things every single day and that our actions even small ones can actually make a difference (11:10) I think that's a good place to wrap things up for today. Yeah, I think so. We've talked about a really tough issue (11:16) the heartbreaking reality of (11:18) youth homelessness (11:20) And the systems that often fail these young people we've got to do better.We really do (11:26) But we also learned about some really inspiring people and organizations out there fighting every day to make a difference (11:33) There's a lot of work to be done for sure (11:35) But like you said we can all do something to help. Absolutely (11:38) Even if it seems small every bit of effort adds up (11:42) So to everyone listening, thank you for joining us on this deep dive. Thanks for having me (11:46) It's been great having you and remember this isn't just about understanding the issue.It's about taking action (11:52) Let's all do our part to create a brighter future for every young person