Pages tagged "Housing & Homelessness"
Congressional Children’s Champions Announced
Washington – Today, the First Focus Campaign for Children, a national bipartisan children’s advocacy group, recognized 100 Members of Congress for leadership on issues important to the health and well-being of children during 2015.
“Lots of politicians talk about kids’ issues, but few back it up,” said Bruce Lesley, president of the Campaign for Children. “Champions and Defenders delivered for kids.”
The advocacy organization recognized 50 Members of Congress as “Champions for Children” for their extraordinary efforts to protect and improve the future of America’s next generation. An additional 50 Members were recognized as “Defenders of Children” for their support of policies that advance the well-being of children.
In selecting Champions and Defenders, the First Focus Campaign for Children noted leaders who introduced, co-sponsored, and voted for legislation to meet children’s needs. In addition, the organization considered Members who demonstrated extraordinary initiative by spearheading activities such as sponsoring hearings or garnering the support of their colleagues to improve the lives of children. The 2015 Champions and Defenders are:
2015 Champions for Children
Senate
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)
Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
Bob Casey (D-PA)
Susan Collins (R-ME)
Dick Durbin (D-IL)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Al Franken (D-MN)
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
Mazie Hirono (D-HI)
Mark Kirk (R-IL)
Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Rob Portman (R-OH)
Jack Reed (D-RI)
Harry Reid (D-NV)
Ron Wyden (D-OR)
House
Karen Bass (D-CA)
Judy Chu (D-CA)
David Cicilline (D-RI)
Katherine Clark (D-MA)
Steve Cohen (D-TN)
Danny Davis (D-IL)
Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
Suzan DelBene (D-WA)
Ted Deutch (D-FL)
Lloyd Doggett (D-TX)
Keith Ellison (D-MN)
Chris Gibson (R-NY)
Gene Green (D-TX)
Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ)
Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL)
Richard Hanna (R-NY)
Mike Honda (D-CA)
Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)
Ann Kuster (D-NH)
Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Alan Lowenthal (D-CA)
Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-NM)
Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)
Doris Matsui (D-CA)
Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Jim McDermott (D-WA)
Jim McGovern (D-MA)
Gwen Moore (D-WI)
Charles Rangel (D-NY)
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)
Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA)
Steve Stivers (R-OH)
Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)
2015 Defenders of Children
Senate
Cory Booker (D-NJ)
Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
Tom Carper (D-DE)
Chris Coons (D-DE)
Orrin Hatch (R-UT)
Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND)
Dean Heller (R-NV)
Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Ed Markey (D-MA)
Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
Brian Schatz (D-HI)
Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)
House
Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Tony Cárdenas (D-CA)
John Conyers (D-MI)
Rodney Davis (R-IL)
Susan Davis (D-CA)
Charlie Dent (R-PA)
Bob Dold (R-IL)
Donna Edwards (D-MD)
Eliot Engel (D-NY)
Elizabeth Esty (D-CT)
Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
Derek Kilmer (D-WA)
Jim Langevin (D-RI)
Sandy Levin (D-MI)
John Lewis (D-GA)
Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ)
Nita Lowey (D-NY)
Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY)
Patrick Murphy (D-FL)
Chellie Pingree (D-ME)
Mark Pocan (D-WI)
Jared Polis (D-CO)
Dave Reichert (R-WA)
Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)
Adam Schiff (D-CA)
Bobby Scott (D-VA)
Jackie Speier (D-CA)
Mike Thompson (D-CA)
Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Juan Vargas (D-CA)
Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ)
Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
John Yarmuth (D-KY)
This is the Campaign for Children’s sixth annual class of Champions for Children. For more information about past honorees, visit www.campaignforchildren.org.
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The First Focus Campaign for Children is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization affiliated with First Focus, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization. The Campaign for Children advocates directly for legislative change in Congress to ensure children and families are the priority in federal policy and budget decisions. For more information, visit campaignforchildren.org.
Who is homeless? Federal agencies don’t agree on who needs help
By The Editorial Board
Define homelessness. Think that sounds easy? Well, when it comes to federal agencies, the answer can be confusing — and contradictory.
A report released by the advocacy group First Focus Campaign for Children and based on U.S. Department of Education statistics showed a troubling increase in the number of homeless students both statewide and across the nation. Nationally, there were 1.4 million children identified as homeless attending public schools in 2013-14, 22,765 of them in Pennsylvania...
There Are More Homeless Students Now Than Before The Recession
By R
On a national level, it seems that economically at least, we’re climbing out of The Great Recession, which experts say lasted from 2007 to about 2009. But new federal data suggests that the recovery has been very uneven, and, in fact, young people are among the groups struggling the most.
In the 2013-2014 school year, the number of homeless children in public school reached a new peak of 1.36 million nationwide. That’s double the number of homeless kids in public schools before the recession...
There Are More Homeless Students Now Than Before The Recession: http://on.mtv.com/1QfY1jh v/ @MTVNews #HCYA h/t @Campaign4Kids #InvestInKids
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Pennsylvania sees rise in homeless students
By Mary Niederberger
The number of homeless students attending public school in Pennsylvania increased by 18 percent between the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years — an increase more than double the national average of 8 percent, according to statistics reported by the U.S. Department of Education.
And while that one-year increase seems dramatic, even more troubling is the 94 percent increase in homeless students in the state since the start of the economic recession in the 2007-08 school year...
Pennsylvania sees rise in homeless students: http://bit.ly/1FcQql0 v/ @PittsburghPG h/t @First_Focus #HCYA #InvestInKids
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Number of U.S. homeless students has doubled since before the recession
By Lyndsey Layton and Emma Brown
The number of homeless children in public schools has doubled since before the recession, reaching a record national total of 1.36 million in the 2013-2014 school year, according to new federal data.
The latest homeless count, an 8 percent increase over the 2012-2013 school year, is a sign that many families continue to struggle financially even as the economy recovers from the housing collapse of 2008. And it offers a glimpse of the growing challenges that public schools face nationwide as they seek to educate an increasing number of low-income children...
Number of U.S. homeless students doubled since before recession: http://wapo.st/1KNUBGs v/ @washingtonpost h/t @Campaign4Kids #InvestInKids
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Homeless Student Count Doubles Pre-Recession Levels, Advocates Call for Action
Washington – U.S. Department of Education data shows the number of homeless children and youth attending America’s public schools has risen to a record-breaking 1,360,747. That number, for the 2013-2014 school year, is up 8 percent from the prior school year and double the 679,724 homeless children and youth attending public schools during the 2006-2007 school year. Despite the dramatic increase in child and youth homelessness since the economic recession, the data likely represents an undercount, as Education Department data does not include homeless infants and toddlers, young children who are not enrolled in public preschool programs, homeless children and youth who were not identified by school officials, and homeless children and youth who are no longer attending public schools.
Less than 20 percent of homeless students are clearly eligible for homeless housing assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The housing agency only considers people staying in shelters or on the streets to be eligible for homeless assistance; however, most homeless children and youth stay temporarily in motels or stay a night here and there at other people’s homes. As a result, more than 1.1 million homeless students are eligible for educational assistance through local schools, but not HUD homeless services including shelter, short-term housing, and assistance with obtaining permanent housing.
The bipartisan Homeless Children and Youth Act (S. 256 in the Senate and H.R. 576 in the House of Representatives) would amend the HUD definition of homelessness so that all homeless children and youth identified by public schools are eligible for assistance, regardless of where they happen to be staying. The Senate bill was introduced in January, and the House bill in April, but the committees of jurisdiction have yet to act on them.
Homeless children and youth face education, health, and safety consequences:
- Children experiencing homelessness are more likely to be diagnosed with learning disabilities;
- Homeless students transfer schools more often, and are more likely to miss school, and have lower standardized test scores;
- Homelessness is the highest risk factor in determining if a student leaves school before graduation; homeless students are 87 percent more likely than their peers to leave school
School districts reported serving over 90,000 unaccompanied homeless youth. Studies have found that:
- 40-60 percent of unaccompanied homeless youth were abused physically in their homes, 20-40 percent were abused sexually;
- Over two-thirds of unaccompanied homeless youth report that at least one of their parents abuses drugs or alcohol, and;
- Unaccompanied homeless youth are more likely to fall victim to sexual exploitation, including human trafficking
In response to the data, leading advocates for homeless children released the following statements:
“HUD is still living in a pre-recession world, but the face of homelessness in America has changed,” said Bruce Lesley, President of the First Focus Campaign for Children. “If HUD won’t act, Congress must force them, by passing the bipartisan Homeless Children and Youth Act before adjourning this year.”
“The data released today confirm what our members see every day – increasing numbers of children and youth struggling to survive without a home,” said Barbara Duffield, Director of Policy and Programs for the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth. “Without access to HUD homeless assistance, schools struggle to stabilize the education and the lives of homeless children and youth. The Homeless Children and Youth Act would eliminate the red tape that prevents local agencies from collaborating to create better futures for these vulnerable students.”
“These trends are heart-breaking yet entirely predictable, given the federal government’s chronic absenteeism in community discussions about affordable housing for low-income families,” said Ruth White, Executive Director, National Center for Housing and Child Welfare. “For over a decade Congress has ignored its responsibility to fill yawning gaps in housing options for low income families – and left America’s public schools to deal with the consequences. HUD simply must turn its attention and funding to robust affordable housing programs for families and relieve this burden on America’s schools – and most of all, the children.”
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The First Focus Campaign for Children is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization affiliated with First Focus, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization. The Campaign for Children advocates directly for legislative change in Congress to ensure children and families are the priority in federal policy and budget decisions. For more information, visit campaignforchildren.org.
NAEHCY is a national grassroots membership association dedicated to ensuring the school enrollment, attendance, and overall success for children and youth whose lives have been disrupted by the lack of safe, permanent and adequate housing. For more information, see www.naehcy.org.
The National Center for Housing and Child Welfare (NCHCW) links housing resources and knowledge to child welfare agencies in order to improve family functioning, prevent family homelessness, and reduce the need for out-of-home placement. NCHCW also brings housing resources to child welfare agencies in order to ensure that older youth in foster care have a connection to permanent family as well as a solid plan for stable housing and services to help them be successful as adults.
Homeless Children
By Bruce Lesley
The rise in local child homelessness (“Schools see more homeless students,” July 24th) is alarming. But what’s appalling is that U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development policy doesn’t prioritize homeless families with children. In fact, America’s housing agency prefers to pretend they’re not even homeless...
Read: New letter from @BruceLesley and @Campaign4Kids about the problem of childhood homelessness. http://bit.ly/1LUYDen | #InvestInKids
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Bill in Congress Affects Foster Kids Here
By David Gorn
California former foster children get Medi-Cal coverage till age 26 -- but that's not the case with Medicaid benefits in 37 other states.
That means those who were in foster care in California and now are ages 18 to 26 can't move to nearby states such as Oregon or Nevada without losing medical benefits...
@Campaign4Kids in the news: New bill affects kids in foster care. From @CalHealthline. Read >> http://bit.ly/1MpyCEh | #InvestInKids
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Support for the Commission on Native Children Act
On July 2nd, 2015, First Focus Campaign for Children sent this letter in support of The Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act (H.R. 2751). The act would establish an 11-person committee to reexamine the federal government's commitment to Native children, and propose policy solutions to better serve them. If adopted, this bill could dramatically improve the lives of Native kids nationwide.
Support for the Foster Youth Independence Act
On June 17, 2015 the First Focus Campaign for Children sent this letter in support of the Foster Youth Independence Act of 2015. This bill extends federal funding for services for youth up to age 23 who age out of foster care. These services can include: assistance with enrolling in college, finding employment, obtaining health coverage, securing housing, and managing money.