CCEH Newsletter
December 2018
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D
ear friends,
It is hard to believe that only two weeks have passed since I began my role as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, and what a two weeks it has been! Just yesterday, I had a chance to join with partners from across the state to celebrate the amazing achievement under Governor Malloy’s Challenge on Family Homelessness, in which 280 families and nearly 550 children were assisted out of homelessness and into stable housing in just 77 days. This achievement proves what is possible when the vision of our leaders helps to focus and accelerate the efforts and ingenuity of our homeless services networks...
With much gratitude,
Richard Cho
CEO
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Governor's Challenge on Family Homelessness
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The Governor's Challenge on Family Homelessness reached its final 77th day on December 11th where Coordinated Access Network (CAN) providers gathered to celebrate their progress alongside Governor Dannel Malloy, Department of Housing's Commissioner Evonne Klein, and staff from CCEH, the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and the Partnership for Strong Communities.
The Governor's Challenge resulted in Connecticut housing 280 families and nearly 550 children; an increase
of 61%
families housed during the same time period last year.
This challenge was an opportunity for statewide policy makers, leaders, and service providers to engage in creative and collaborative problem-solving to help more families secure safe and stable housing quickly.
News Coverage of the Event:
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CT Schools Raise Awareness to
End Youth Homelessness
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Twelve high schools and student groups recently received small grants from CCEH, in partnership with the National Center for Homeless Education and the CT Department of Education, to educate and assist students and staff help young people experiencing a housing crisis.
These projects began during Hunger and Homelessness Awareness (HHA) week which ran from November 10-18, with some continuing through the New Year. Students
organized a variety of projects such as hosting a sleep out, creating a care closet, and organizing food, hygiene, and clothing drives.
Read more.
Schools - students, faculty, and staff - can always get involved in raising awareness and bringing an end to homelessness.
Ways Schools Can Get Involved:
- Volunteer for the Point-In-Time and/or Youth Count January 22-29, 2019.
- Utilize the lesson plans and strategies included in the “Ending Youth Homelessness: A Toolkit for Connecticut Schools”.
- Check out this new brief from the National Center for Homeless Education: Supporting In-School and Out-of-School Youth Experiencing Homelessness Through Education and Workforce Partnerships
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17th Annual Training Institute
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SAVE THE DATE
May 16, 2019 | Hartford, CT
"Beyond Barriers: Enhancing Access to Housing Solutions
CCEH's
Annual Training Institute
(ATI)
is Connecticut’s premier capacity-building event for organizations, frontline providers, and partners working to prevent and end homelessness in Connecticut. National and state presenters gather to provide training and information on best practices, promising innovations, and new system-wide initiatives as they relate to ending homelessness. With over 400 attendees, this event is the largest gathering of the state’s homeless service sector and its partners and has sold-out for the past three years. The ATI is a highly-visible event that has been attended by the Governor, other key officials, and national leaders.
This year, we seek to
Enhance Access to Housing Solutions
by removing barriers - like racial or cultural bias, mental health status, poor practices/policies, lack of understanding - and
enhancing
promising practices and partnerships that ensure equitable access.
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CCEH invites you to share your expertise in addressing homelessness by
submitting a proposal
to present a workshop at the
2019 Annual Training Institute. We are looking for engaging workshops th
at provide attendees with takeaways and knowledge that will help them in their work to end homelessness. Presentations on innovative strategies that are data driven and are aligned with Housing First principles are especially desir
ed.
Visit our website
to learn more about this year's tracks and to submit a proposal.
Deadline for submission is
January 25th.
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Landlord Recruitment & Retention
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Engaging landlords is crucial in our work to quickly re-house those who are experiencing homelessness. Connecticut's challenging housing market makes it even more important to learn successful strategies to create and maintain landlord relationships.
CCEH has a "
Landlord Recruitment & Retention" resource page dedicated to helping providers learn best practices and strategies to work with landlords. Below are tips from a recent Rapid Re-Housing Learning Collaborative training on "
A Business Approach to Landlord Engagement" given by CCEH staff, Emily Quigley from Homes with Hope, and Emily's partnering landlord Vivian Hernandez.
Things to remember when working with landlords:
- Their perspective - what landlords want and what motivates them. (rent on time, good neighbors, no property damage, and no vacancies.)
- You have a "product" to sell them. Thoughtfully develop your program/client's selling points or strengths and make your pitch.
- Use and build your network to find apartment leads. (Network could include: neighbors, co-workers, agency board members, donors, church members, local political or community leaders, etc.)
- Take time to develop a lasting relationship. Be open, honest, responsive, and available. Respond to calls/emails within 24 hours.
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Help raise
be homeful
funds!
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Last call for Paddington bear-raiser kits! These adorable kits give you and your community a fun and easy way to raise
be homeful
funds. These kits are perfect for businesses, congregations, and retail establishments looking for a fun and easy way to hold a drive. You can also set up your drive
online here
.
If you are part of a Coordinated Access Network you can also recruit communities to hold drives to benefit your CAN’s
be homeful
fund. Contact Ryan Beach at
[email protected]
to order your bear-raiser kit today.
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Reaching Home
Campaign | November 19-23, 2018
The Data Coordinator will work with HMIS and
will be responsible for data entry, reporting, analysis and dissemination to meet CCEH’s increasing demand for accurate and timely data in the state.
Hartford Business Journal | November 19, 2018
CCEH and CCADV were awarded the 2018 Nonprofit Collaboration of the Year award by the Hartford Business Journal.
CCEH Website | November 2018
The Legislative Housing Re-Entry Working Group
Urban Institute Brief | October 9, 2018
National Alliance for Safe Housing | October 2018
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Point-in-Time Count
January 22, 2019
Youth Count
January 23-29, 2019
Annual Training Institute
May 16, 2019
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Upcoming Trainings & Meetings
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Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness
Connect with us
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