2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Objective Count of homeless and precariously housed families and individuals Understand the scope of the problem locally and statewide HUD requirement for McKinney-Vento Programs 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Count Methodology for Unsheltered and Precariously Housed Housing screening surveys administered at service locations and places where homeless people congregate or live Point In Time: January 25, 2009 Surveys collected January Surveys returned to KSU for data input 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Who Is Homeless In Georgia? Unsheltered Homeless * Streets * Camping * Car * Dilapidated/Abandoned Housing * Sheltered Homeless * Emergency Shelter * Transitional Housing * Motel Vouchers * Precariously Housed * Doubled Up * Motels * 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Definitions Unsheltered homeless – living on the street, in cars, camping, in abandoned housing/buildings Sheltered homeless – living in transitional housing, emergency shelters, or in a hotel/motel with stay paid by service provider Precariously housed – doubled up or in hotels/motels Imminent Housing Loss and/or Dilapidated Housing – facing loss of housing within a week or living in housing not fit for habitation Other – jail, hospital, or other non-permanent housing 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Questionnaire Designed to be administered by staff or by volunteers No more than 10 minutes Questions to help with problem of duplication Housing status questions Family members Special circumstances 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Survey Collection 2008 Count – most successful counts collected between surveys 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Who Is Surveyed? People whose housing is unstable, precarious, or a problem Screening Question: Have you had any difficulty with housing in the past month? 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Where To Survey Where people go for services Where people congregate (library, hospital, bus station, day labor sites) On the telephone – people seeking assistance Where people live -- Count people living in abandoned houses or trailers, farm buildings, or encampments Proactively seek out people to survey 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Organizing Your Count Create count committee or task force Meet with representatives of City and County government Meet with agencies providing services Brief them on plans for January count Solicit their ideas on other places to count Get their commitment to participate Do they need volunteers? Identify “hot spots” Identify interviewers for “hot spots” 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Preparing for the Count Potential participating organizations/locations for administering the survey DFACS Housing Authority Food Pantries and Soup Kitchens Clothing Programs Shelters Community Service Board Health Department Nonprofits Day Labor Sites 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Other Potential Partners Local government Police Chief and Sheriff Media Churches Family Connections School and hospital social workers Others? 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Dalton/Whitfield Homeless Point in Time Count Contact Organizations Action Ministries ADAC Adult Protective Services Babies Can’t Wait/ Children With Special Needs Carter Hope Cherokee Estates Dalton Community Center Dalton Public Schools Dalton-Whitfield CDC DEO Medical Clinic Dept. Juvenile Justice DFCS DOC-UP Early Head Start Family Crisis Center Family Support Council First Steps Georgia Hope Hamilton Home Health/Hospice Harvest Outreach Head Start Healthy Families Highland Rivers Motels, Transitional, Emergency Shelter New Hope Women’s Center NW GA Health District/HIV Support Oak Haven Promotoras de Salud Providence Ministries Red Cross Salvation Army United Methodist Children’s Home United Way – 211 Upper Room Mission Westcott Whitfield County Jail (Men & Women) Whitfield County Schools Women’s After Care

Surveying Where People Live Counting people living in dilapidated housing, abandoned trailers, farm buildings, or encampments Survey at those locations Establish safety guidelines Volunteer release form 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Counting Where People Congregate Bus or train station Library Parks Other Places? 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Volunteer Safety Work in teams of two or more Consult law enforcement Ask people familiar with the area 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Incentives Consider giving small gift bags or fast food coupons to survey participants Provides a way for others in the community to get involved Way of thanking survey participants for their help 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Surveying on the Telephone Identify agencies that receive calls for help When people call seeking assistance Assist them as normal Then ask caller if they would be willing to answer a few questions to help the community learn more about housing needs 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Shelter Count DCA will conduct a count to obtain aggregate data Surveys will give more detailed information People coming to shelters later in the week Jails and Hospitals 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Training Staff and Volunteers Train the trainer sessions in early January Schedule local training during the week prior to the count Training materials from DCA 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Pre Count Advertising Notify local news media Good way to recruit volunteers Organizations to collect data Incentives 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

What a Successful Count Needs All of the identified organizations on- board and organized to collect the surveys Trained staff and volunteers Community support 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Returning Completed Surveys Pick up surveys on Feb. 2nd Copy completed surveys Return Originals to KSU (addresses provided) by Feb. 9th 2009 Georgia Homeless Count

Need Help? Dr. Jane Massey Massey Consulting Georgia Homeless Count