Accessing Youth Services through 211

Presenters Mary Ann Haley Laura Robidoux Sarah Chess Deputy Director, Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness Alana Kroeber Director, United Way of 211 Laura Robidoux Manager, United Way of 211 Sarah Chess Training & Communications Coordinator, Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness

Housekeeping Because this is a webinar, attendees are muted. Please type any questions you have into the Chat Box or Questions Box. We are recording this webinar and will send out the link to everyone who registered later today

Youth Homelessness in CT There are an estimated 3,000 homeless/unstably housed youth in Connecticut 40% indicated that they had no permanent place to live for over a year

Challenges to End Youth Homelessness Homeless and unstably housed youth are challenging to identify and engage. They are considered a “hidden” population CT ranked 49th of all 50 states for identifying and educating homeless students

Effects on Youth Significantly increases risk and results in poor outcomes for young people School: chronic absenteeism, drop out Health: poor nutrition, physical/sexual assault, STD/HIV, drug addiction Mental health: depression, anxiety, suicide Delinquency: arrests, criminal record

Collaboration + Resources + Data = Ending Homelessness Systems are Working! Collaboration + Resources + Data = Ending Homelessness CT was the first state to end chronic homelessness among Veterans in 2015 CT was the second state to end all homelessness amongst all Veterans in February of 2016 As of December 2016, all chronically homeless individuals in CT have been matched to housing!

Youth Engagement Team Initiatives (YETIs) Youth Engagement Team Initiatives are regional groups dedicated to creating a plan and taking step to end youth homelessness in their region. YETIs conducted the 2017 CT Youth Count! in January of 2017 in over 60 towns with over 300 volunteers.

Alana Kroeber Director, Information Services

2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources Today’s Agenda 2-1-1 Overview Brief overview of 2-1-1 in CT and across the country 2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources An overview of youth-serving programs in the 2-1-1 database 211ct.org Demonstration Searching for youth services and other tools Housing Protocols Recent and ongoing youth changes

What is 2-1-1? 2-1-1 is a free, confidential information and referral service that connects people to essential health and human services 24 hours a day, seven days a week online and over the phone. There are over 200 independently operated 2-1-1s throughout the US, many operated by United Ways Accredited by AIRS (Alliance for Information and Referral Systems) Infoline began in 1976, as a public/private partnership between United Ways and the State of Connecticut In 1999, Connecticut became the first state to use 2-1-1 for statewide assistance 2-1-1 Connecticut celebrated in 2016

How does 2-1-1 help? Our Expert Contact Specialists Fielding contacts on the phone and online, 2-1-1 contact specialists address immediate needs, and find resources and services that help families and individuals get the help they need to get ahead. 4,000 agencies offering over 40,000 programs and services 400 eLibrary papers All resources fully updated at least once per year 5 full-time Resource Specialists Services indexed using standardized taxonomy from AIRS Our Continuously Updated 2-1-1 Database With Support from United Ways and the State of Connecticut The State of Connecticut and local United Ways provide tremendous support to 2-1-1 through funding and by spreading the word about the services that we offer to everyone 24/7/365

How much help does 2-1-1 provide? In FY2016, 2-1-1 handled 323,426 calls from Connecticut residents with 360,817 requests for service. The 2-1-1 website received more than 950,381 visits in FY2016.

2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources Today’s Agenda 2-1-1 Overview Brief overview of 2-1-1 in CT and across the country 2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources An overview of youth-serving programs in the 2-1-1 database 211ct.org Demonstration Searching for youth services and other tools Housing Protocols Recent and ongoing youth changes

2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources Housing & Shelter Education Runaway/Youth Shelters (14) Runaway/Homeless Youth Helplines (5) Supervised Living for Older Youth (20) Low Income/Subsidized Private Rental Housing (468) Education Tutoring Services (73) Homework Help Programs (51) Graduation Requirements Programs (82) Adult/Child Mentoring Programs (60) Arts & Recreation Recreational/Leisure/Arts Instruction (55)* Recreational Activities/Sports (354)* Youth Enrichment Programs (330) Leadership Development (82)* Employment & Career Job Finding Assistance (70)* Career Exploration (38) Job Training Formats (133) Vocational Education (41) Healthcare Community Clinics (92) Teen Family Planning Programs (16) Sexually Transmitted Disease Screening (64) Mental Health Adolescent/Youth Counseling (226) Talkines/Warmlines (26) Youth Issues Lines (3) Psychiatric Mobile Response Teams (35) Child Guidance (100)

2-1-1 eLibrary: Youth Resources eLibrary Paper Examples: Bullying Safe Haven for Newborns Act School Clothes and School Supplies Summer Food Program Warning Signs of Youth Violence Help for Children with Learning Disabilities Education for Homeless Children

Other Tools & Resources Youth & Young Adults category page Live chat Texting for soup kitchens Get Connected projects Social media Coming Soon: Texting Expanded social media

2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources Today’s Agenda 2-1-1 Overview Brief overview of 2-1-1 in CT and across the country 2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources An overview of youth-serving programs in the 2-1-1 database 211ct.org Demonstration Searching for youth services and other tools Housing Protocols Recent and ongoing youth changes

211ct.org Website Demo Keyword searches Filtering by target population Filtering by age range Category searches Help statements Events calendar New agencies/updates Get Connected

2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources Today’s Agenda 2-1-1 Overview Brief overview of 2-1-1 in CT and across the country 2-1-1 Database: Youth Resources An overview of youth-serving programs in the 2-1-1 database 211ct.org Demonstration Searching for youth services and other tools Housing Protocols Recent and ongoing youth changes

Housing Protocols

Additional Resources: Youth Help Resources Youth-help.org CCEH Youth Resources http://cceh.org/provider-resources/youth-resources/ Webinar is available at cceh.org. It was created by the Youth Action Hub, a group of youth in the greater Hartford area with lived experience with homelessness and housing instability. This webinar brings in the youth perspective on approaching and engaging youth and young adults for the youth count, but the strategies can be applied to general outreach and engagement. We can send this around following the webinar. Youth 211 CT Website http://uwc.211ct.org/categorysearch/youth/

Contact Us Alana Kroeber Director United Way of Connecticut 2-1-1 Information Services alana.kroeber@ctunitedway.org 860-571-7209 Laura Robidoux Manager United Way of Connecticut 2-1-1 Housing laura.robidoux@ctunitedway.org 860-571-6874