1. Homeless & Unstably Housed Youth Outreach

2. Presenters Mary Ann Haley Erin Wixsten
Deputy Director, Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness John Lawlor
Program Manager, The Connection
Erin Wixsten
Youth Consultant, OrgCode Consulting, Inc

3. Agenda Introduction to Youth Homelessness General Outreach Essentials
John Lawlor: The Connection Overview
Erin Wixsten: Youth & Young Adults Outreach
Questions!

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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!

8. 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.

9. 2017 CT Youth Count!
The 2017 CT Youth Count! is the second statewide census of homeless and unstably housed youth and young adults in Connecticut.
Volunteer administered an anonymous survey to youth ages across the state during the week of Jan

10. The Goal: Tailor Outreach to Youth and Young Adults
Youth Count Strategy:
Hotspots: Volunteer Canvassing
Organizational Connections
Come and Be Counted Locations
The Goal: Tailor Outreach to Youth and Young Adults

11. Hotspots: Volunteer Canvassing
These are outdoor and indoor locations where youth typically congregate that volunteers go to administer the survey.

12. Hotspots: Volunteer Canvassing
These are outdoor and indoor locations where youth typically congregate that volunteers go to administer the survey.

13. Organizational Connections
Participating organizations trained staff to administer the 2017 CT Youth Count! Survey to youth and young adults.
These are locations to refer youth who may want to be counted at a later time.

14. Come & Be Counted Locations
These locations were set up by volunteers or team leaders for a set time to administer the survey to young adults over a set period of time.
Schools, for instance, could direct students to go to these sites to be surveyed.
Examples: Panera Bread across from East Haven high, Youth Service Bureaus, mobile van, McDonald’s in the NE, Drop-in Centers, libraries, etc. ...these can also be hot spots but not always. Most Come and Be counted sites will offer incentives.

15. Identifying Locations:
Someone’s domain
Always “knock”
Accept hospitality
Location confidentiality
Cars

16. Trust Don’t promise anything Do what you say Always be on time
Explain processes
Non-judgmental, no really

17. Start off Housing First:
Introduce yourself
Check your attitude
Why are you here
To learn
To support
To triage
To get housing

18. Housing Focus What are we here for? “Will you allow me to help you?”
Activities that lead to or are necessary for housing.
Frequent follow-up

19. Superpowers
Astounding abilities developed during homelessness: Crap-detector
If you are not comfortable, those interviewed will not be comfortable.
If you think your process is bad, it will show. If you don’t trust “the system,” it will show.

20. John Lawlor Director of Homeless Youth/Young Adult Programs

21. Start program outreach services
Serving Hartford and the surrounding area
Primarily rural-based strategies utilized
3 staff that are split with YA shelter responsibilities
Closely connected services with our YA shelter
Staff that youth work with on the Outreach side are the ones they’ll work with while in the shelter
Provide survival aid, referrals, navigation of CAN process
Connection to education, mental health, substance abuse, vocational services
Offer mediation/reconnection with family and other supportive adults
253 youth served last year

22. Start Program outreach observations
Large number of couch surfing youth with brief, intermittent episodes of literal homelessness
Concerned about going to existing adult shelters
Very limited support network (especially with adults)
Still connected electronically
Difficulty in navigating systems on their own and following through
Time of day that couch surfers finally know if they’ll have a place to stay
Safety concerns. Cleanliness concerns. Rules seem too stringent. Disconnection from their peers d/t kerfews, etc. Kicked out during the day.
The importance of free wifi and staying connected to your network.

23. Contact Information
John Lawlor (860) ext 2080

24. Promising Practices in Outreach to Youth Experiencing Homelessness
Erin Wixsten OrgCode Consulting, Inc. @OrgCode

25. What Does Outreach Look Like?
Street based
To identify young people who are experiencing homelessness and to provide youth on the street with resources and services
Active assistance in accessing shelter
Outreach teams – street outreach should not be done alone
Teams go to areas with high youth traffic – basketball courts, malls or bus stations, known ‘tracks’, etc. to create a presence and identity for resources
Peer networking
Access point for Youth Coordinated Entry System
Staff are trained in TAY-VI-SPDAT or partner

26. What Does Outreach Look Like?
Community based
Can be done solo
Outreach within youth-frequented spaces
Schools
Food shelf
Library
Usually a partnership is created between the agency doing the outreach and the entities within which outreach is being done
Creates mobility to services
Markets resources and programs that serve young people experiencing homelessness
Access point for Youth Coordinated Entry System

27. What Does Outreach Look Like?
Rural
Less visible – you must become visible to them
Frequently involved with another system
Isolated
Not homeless or no homeless services
Less likely to have a ‘street’
Not street engaged
No street family
Less street outreach, more community based

28. Remember
Workers need to be seen as doing the work of the sector, and not simply of the agency they work for.
Requires a higher degree of interagency/multi-system collaboration
First point of contact for homeless response system – access point
Know your community’s resources and how to navigate the system
Become visible to the invisible
Actively engage
Stay safe

29. Outreach Safety Protocols
Street outreach should be done in teams
Teams should communicate their plan for outreach to a supervisor
Plan for where you are going
Street layout, gangs, access for safety, etc.
Have a safe word that communicates EXIT
Train staff thoroughly including shadow shifts with experienced teams
Train staff in how to identify street drugs, sex trafficking, gang signs, etc.
Do not interrupt fights or the sale of drugs or sex
Don’t carry personal identification in your outreach bag

30. What Should Outreach Provide?
Some basic needs
Access to emergency shelter
Shared knowledge of drop in centers, health care, food shelves, hot meals, showers, public benefits, and case management services
Survival aid
Youth CES assessment (TAY-VI-SPDAT)
Information and referrals
Crisis intervention
Follow-up support
Contact information – work cell, professional social media acct.

31. Partnership With Law Enforcement
Become known to your local law enforcement
Intentionally develop relationship
May use Outreach services as a resource
Collaboration is possible
Find a champion within the department
If you are present during an arrest, do not interfere
If you witnessed potentially illegal handling or otherwise questionable behavior by law enforcement, write down the badge number

32. Harm Reduction Affirms choice and self-determination
Opens door for honest communication about drug use and other risk factors which allows for a stronger service interaction and intervention
Aligns with a youth development approach
Supports a trauma-informed framework
Supports a youth-centered, strengths based intervention
Creates a Housing First approach to outreach
Youth do not have to be ‘housing ready’
Promotes a ‘low barrier’ response

33. Harm Reduction and Resources
Sleeping outside
Exposure
Health care
Laws
- Victims and perpetrators of crimes
Drugs and alcohol
- Use and sales of
Sexual exploitation
Sexual health and resources – safe sex kits
Resources for getting out of the life (if/when ready)
Resources for DV, CSEC youth

34. Trauma Informed Care
Traumatic experiences violate our fundamental belief that the world is a safe place and people can be trusted.
Complex trauma describes both children’s exposure to multiple traumatic events—often of an invasive, interpersonal nature—and the wide-ranging, long- term impact of this exposure

35. Trauma Informed Care
Interaction with staff members and authority figures.
Experiences in out of home placement are common for homeless youth causing or resulting in neglect, separation from parents/family, placed with strangers, incarceration
Healthy development impacted by fear and lack of safety and/or trust
Likely to be distrustful of ‘authority’ figures (a.k.a all adults) especially those in a ‘caring’ role
Safety and trust is paramount for youth – may test staff to determine if they are reliable, honest, consistent, fair, etc. – may intentionally challenge and test boundaries

36. Trauma Informed Solutions
Reframe ‘defiance’ behaviors as resilience and survival skills
Reframe ‘consequences’ as results of decisions made
Slow down and explain every process and step
Let youth know that they have the right to share only the information that they want to share
Do not expect immediate rapport and do not assume that immediate rapport means trust has been built
Boundaries – staff should never attempt to play or replace friends or family

37. Trauma Informed Care
Ability to participate in programs and follow through with service planning:
Complex trauma can cause difficulty in regulating emotions, relating to others, planning for the future, and following through with beneficial activities.
Depression, anxiety, learning challenges, and fear of failure can compound these difficulties
Youth seem unwilling or uninterested in service planning
May not return phone calls, make meetings, follow through on goals, etc.
Appear “defiant” – frequently breaking rules or challenging staff; aren’t housing ready

38. Trauma Informed Solution
All staff trained on the impact of trauma on adolescent brain development
Remember chronological age of the youth may not match his or her present functioning (intellectual, emotional, or maturity levels).
Use assessments to ‘meet them where they are at’ and see them as identify opportunities for coaching
Positive experiences and trusting relationships can help youth recover from the effects of trauma.

39. Positive Youth Development
Sees young people as assets to community, not deficits
Values the contributions of young people
Identifies strengths and skills in youth
Recognize behaviors are survival skills
Puts young people in leadership and decision making role
Co-creates
Positive Youth Development focuses on the delivery of services and opportunities that promote the development of a sense of a competence, usefulness, belonging and empowerment for all youth served.

40. Positive Youth Development
Notice positive changes
Personalize intervention based on youth’s interests
Create developmentally appropriate programming
Greet young people with a smile and light energy
Be where you say you will be there
Do what you say you will do
Work with young people as partners – they are in the drivers seat
Feed them, listen to them, respect them
Create peer-outreach workers or other leadership positions
Create intentional space for youth to make decisions

41. Key Points Train and orientate staff well to this role
Trauma Informed Care
Harm Reduction
Motivational Interviewing and Stages of Changes
Positive Youth Development
Issues that impact street engaged and youth experiencing homelessness
TAY-VI-SPDAT for access to Youth Coordinated Entry process
Boundaries!

42. Key Points Credibility with youth Credibility with law enforcement
Know your community’s resources and how to connect young people
Collect and track data – sustain your outreach program
Give outreach workers professional development
In the trenches – perspective – working for the whole system in a critical role
Beware of unintended consequences
Outreach vs. bringing awareness to a vulnerable population

43. Thank You! Website: www.OrgCode.com Facebook: www.Facebook.com/OrgCode
Twitter: @OrgCode

44. Additional Resources:
For this webinar and additional resources on outreach strategies used during the 2017 CT Youth Count!
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.
Resources on Outreach and Engagement, including a webinar panel of national leaders from the 100,000 homes initiative, etc.

45. Questions
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

46. Contact
If you have questions for CCEH or any of the presenters following the webinar, please contact CCEH and we will connect with presenters. Mary Ann Haley Deputy Director Sarah Chess Training & Communications Coordinator