The Washington State Housing Trust Fund is a vital funding source in our state and we are at risk of losing this fund. We are re-posting information from the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance and urging you to write to your Senator.
Just before the end of the regular session, the House of Representatives approved the Senate Capital budget with an amendment to fund the Housing Trust Fund with $50 million. An investment of this size will create at least 1,500 jobs, generate $10.3 million in taxes for local governments, and bring in $28.7 million in income for local businesses. Now is a critical time to contact your Senator to urge support for this critical investment.
It is your advocacy that will ensure the Trust Fund is funded at $50 million. Many of the projects that are "in the pipeline" and ready to begin will build housing for those who can least afford it - families and individuals struggling with or leaving homelessness, the disabled, and seniors on fixed incomes. Many of these individuals and families only source of income is the small $339 per month cash grant from the GA-U program. This tiny amount allows these Washingtonians to afford the basics like housing and food.
The Housing Trust Fund is essential to providing housing for those who need it the most. The Senate needs to know that the Trust Fund not only creates jobs, but also creates a path out of homelessness for thousands of people throughout Washington.
Contact your Senator today!
Read more from other organizations: YWCA Action Alert, Building Changes, Washington Low Income Housing Alliance.
Showing posts with label homeless. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homeless. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Classical Concert will Raise Awareness about Homelessness
Sing Us Home — A free classical concert to raise awareness about homelessness with 65-voice choir and orchestra.
Please join First Place Sunday, March 28th, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. at Seattle’s First Baptist Church for an afternoon of hope, community and music sponsored by Seattle First Baptist and The Greater Seattle Council of Churches.
Sing Us Home features an array of top notch musicians and soloists, including 65-singers, an orchestra, and the Lakeside High School Chorale.
The program will feature Henry Mollicone's Beatitude Mass (for the Homeless), written in 2005. Mollicone's music has been compared by reviewers to that of Bernstein, Britten, and Sondheim. His compositions are tuneful, dramatic, lyrical and powerful. The Beatitude Mass intersperses sections of the Latin Mass with texts from interviews with people living in homeless shelters.
This ten movement choral/orchestral work weaves four of the five movements of the ordinary of the Latin Mass with several other texts. The work begins and ends with beatitudes, a literary form which begins with the word "blessed" and, in this case, is applied to the situation of those who are homeless. No doubt this will be a powerful event that you will not want to miss. You can learn more about Henry Mollicone and the soloists here.
This event is free, however, there will be a free-will offering during the concert, but to increase the giving we are encouraging those who are able to purchase a donor pass in advance for $50 which will reserve you a seat. 100% of the donations will go to First Place.
If you are interested in a purchasing a pass you can do so:
Directly following the concert will be an awareness fair with local organizations who work to eradicate homelessness.
If you have any questions about this event, please email Melissa Collett at First Place.
Please join First Place Sunday, March 28th, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. at Seattle’s First Baptist Church for an afternoon of hope, community and music sponsored by Seattle First Baptist and The Greater Seattle Council of Churches.
Sing Us Home features an array of top notch musicians and soloists, including 65-singers, an orchestra, and the Lakeside High School Chorale.
The program will feature Henry Mollicone's Beatitude Mass (for the Homeless), written in 2005. Mollicone's music has been compared by reviewers to that of Bernstein, Britten, and Sondheim. His compositions are tuneful, dramatic, lyrical and powerful. The Beatitude Mass intersperses sections of the Latin Mass with texts from interviews with people living in homeless shelters.
This ten movement choral/orchestral work weaves four of the five movements of the ordinary of the Latin Mass with several other texts. The work begins and ends with beatitudes, a literary form which begins with the word "blessed" and, in this case, is applied to the situation of those who are homeless. No doubt this will be a powerful event that you will not want to miss. You can learn more about Henry Mollicone and the soloists here.
This event is free, however, there will be a free-will offering during the concert, but to increase the giving we are encouraging those who are able to purchase a donor pass in advance for $50 which will reserve you a seat. 100% of the donations will go to First Place.
If you are interested in a purchasing a pass you can do so:
- On the Seattle First Baptist website.
- Contacting the Seattle First Baptist Music Office at 206.325.6051 ext 27
- E-mailing vicky@seattlefirstbaptist.org
Directly following the concert will be an awareness fair with local organizations who work to eradicate homelessness.
If you have any questions about this event, please email Melissa Collett at First Place.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
"Kids Not Cuts": First Place Students Advocate in Olympia
“Kids Not Cuts!” was the Have a Heart for Kids Day theme this year. More than 4,000 people from throughout the state gathered in Olympia on Monday, February 15th to rally for the issues that are most important to Washington’s kids.
Have a Heart for Kids Day is a yearly lobbying day organized by The Children’s Alliance to bring attention to the issues affecting children who often are not able to advocate for themselves.
House Bills important to our students and parents right now include:
House Bill 3177 Housing Trust Fund & House Bill 1956 authorizing the housing of homeless people on property owned or controlled by a church.
Early Monday morning students, parents, teachers and volunteers loaded buses at First Place to head to Olympia for the annual Have a Heart for Kids Day rally.
In anticipation of the day, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade classes researched bills the House and Senate are considering right now and wrote letters to their legislators telling how they felt about those bills and whether they should pass. Here are a few excerpts from letters written by First Place students:
Dear Representative Pettigrew,
Dear Representative Chopp,
Dear Representative Orwall,
Student letters also talked about funds for school nurses, support for animal protection laws, and, of course, more time for recess.
During the day Representative Eric Pettigrew and Speaker of the House Frank Chopp took time to meet with First Place students and their parents, and listen to their letters and stories.
Other exciting parts of the day included marching through the capitol campus up to the steps of the Legislative Building, joining a rally of 4,000 people calling for steps toward a healthy economic future for Washington kids. First Place students made and carried signs with slogans like “Kids Not Cuts!” and “Hunger doesn’t take a summer vacation” to support programs that are vital to the health and success of kids.
Most importantly, First Place families saw that their stories and presence do make a difference in how legislators think about and respond to issues and they know that their voice is an important one.
Have a Heart for Kids Day is a yearly lobbying day organized by The Children’s Alliance to bring attention to the issues affecting children who often are not able to advocate for themselves.
House Bills important to our students and parents right now include:House Bill 3177 Housing Trust Fund & House Bill 1956 authorizing the housing of homeless people on property owned or controlled by a church.
Early Monday morning students, parents, teachers and volunteers loaded buses at First Place to head to Olympia for the annual Have a Heart for Kids Day rally.
In anticipation of the day, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade classes researched bills the House and Senate are considering right now and wrote letters to their legislators telling how they felt about those bills and whether they should pass. Here are a few excerpts from letters written by First Place students:Dear Representative Pettigrew,
I am writing in regards to HB 3177.
My family and I live in a shelter. If my parents didn’t find shelter we would be homeless. My family now has hope for a better future. I think it is really important to pass this bill because in the future families like mine will need a safe place to live.
Dear Representative Chopp,
I ask for your support for HB 1956, authorizing the housing of homeless people on property owned or controlled by a church.
Recently in my school’s neighborhood, a church hosted tent city. They never messed with anybody and they looked happy and peaceful. I think it’s better that they stay there than under the free way. Please consider this bill.
Dear Representative Orwall,
I am writing in regard to House Bill 2621. I want to pick this bill because it will keep our children current with technology by providing opportunities for specialized learning.
I think this is a good plan because I go to a school that has small classes and personal instruction. We do lots of learning projects like this letter to you. Our school gets lots of support from local businesses and community volunteers. I have gone to my school for 2 years and it has been a good experience and I have learned a lot.
Please vote for this bill so it can help other kids learn more about science, technology, engineering, and math.
Student letters also talked about funds for school nurses, support for animal protection laws, and, of course, more time for recess.
During the day Representative Eric Pettigrew and Speaker of the House Frank Chopp took time to meet with First Place students and their parents, and listen to their letters and stories.
Other exciting parts of the day included marching through the capitol campus up to the steps of the Legislative Building, joining a rally of 4,000 people calling for steps toward a healthy economic future for Washington kids. First Place students made and carried signs with slogans like “Kids Not Cuts!” and “Hunger doesn’t take a summer vacation” to support programs that are vital to the health and success of kids.
Most importantly, First Place families saw that their stories and presence do make a difference in how legislators think about and respond to issues and they know that their voice is an important one.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Vote Yes On Prop. 1!
by Dr. Doreen Cato, Executive Director
On November 3rd, if Seattle voters do not vote to approve Housing Levy, Proposition 1, First Place will lose important funding to two of our most essential programs; the Rental Assistance Program and the Housing Program.
Please vote yes to renew this important proposition when you vote between now and November 3rd. You will find Proposition 1 on the back of your ballot in the upper right hand corner. Vote YES to approve the Levy, which for the past 28 years has been assisting some of Washington’s most vulnerable citizens from losing their housing in difficult times. Last year, for example the First Place Rental Assistance Program directly served one hundred and forty five individuals helping these people with immediate funding to help them retain or obtain housing.
Also, by providing networking and contact information to other community resources, the First Place Rental Assistance Program served approximately 3,362 individuals last year.
First Place is one among many local organizations providing Rental Assistance funding to families in order to prevent them from becoming homeless. This funding helps by:
Where will these families go when they lose their homes? Our state’s unemployment rate just went up to 9.3% -- now more than ever families need help to keep their homes and children need a safe and warm place to come home to.
First Place endorses passing Proposition 1.
*This letter is part of bi-yearly newsletter.
On November 3rd, if Seattle voters do not vote to approve Housing Levy, Proposition 1, First Place will lose important funding to two of our most essential programs; the Rental Assistance Program and the Housing Program.
Please vote yes to renew this important proposition when you vote between now and November 3rd. You will find Proposition 1 on the back of your ballot in the upper right hand corner. Vote YES to approve the Levy, which for the past 28 years has been assisting some of Washington’s most vulnerable citizens from losing their housing in difficult times. Last year, for example the First Place Rental Assistance Program directly served one hundred and forty five individuals helping these people with immediate funding to help them retain or obtain housing.
Also, by providing networking and contact information to other community resources, the First Place Rental Assistance Program served approximately 3,362 individuals last year.
First Place is one among many local organizations providing Rental Assistance funding to families in order to prevent them from becoming homeless. This funding helps by:
- preventing families from losing their homes and becoming homeless;
- preventing homelessness while a family deals with job loss, medical bills or a death in the family;
- moving families into market-rate housing through providing deposits for apartments;
- providing support services to stabilize families for the long-term; and
- leveraging Non-Profit developers, enabling them to build affordable housing for families.
Where will these families go when they lose their homes? Our state’s unemployment rate just went up to 9.3% -- now more than ever families need help to keep their homes and children need a safe and warm place to come home to.
First Place endorses passing Proposition 1.
*This letter is part of bi-yearly newsletter.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
What is the newest issue emerging in homelessness policy?
Recently the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius had a Q & A session with the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Below is her answer from the first of five questions where she specifically talks about homeless families with children. It's exciting to see that families with children are at the top of the list of emerging issues.
Read the full article here.
Below is her answer from the first of five questions where she specifically talks about homeless families with children. It's exciting to see that families with children are at the top of the list of emerging issues.
What is the newest issue emerging in homelessness policy?
The issue of homelessness among children has become particularly visible as the recent collapse of the housing industry coupled with the current recession has swelled the number of families with children seeking homelessness assistance. I believe that it is possible to increase our efforts to help the growing population of homeless children and families, while also maintaining our efforts to address chronic homelessness. There are sizable opportunities for real collaboration using funding that has been made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, as well as with the recent passage of the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act. In addition, the President’s budget for fiscal year 2010 includes over $400 million in HHS programs targeted to individuals, youth, and families experiencing homelessness, and a total of $338 billion for fourteen non-targeted, or mainstream, HHS programs that can serve persons experiencing homelessness. It will be critical to coordinate these resources flowing into communities to ensure that we are reaching the broadest populations possible, including in our efforts to prevent homelessness. HHS programs provide critical supportive services to homeless individuals, families, and children, and these services help these populations achieve or maintain economic and housing stability. By partnering HHS resources with resources available through other Federal agencies we can ensure a broader reach.
Read the full article here.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Family homelessness up 9% nationally, 56% in suburban areas
Yesterday the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) present its 2008 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress. The report showed that family homelessness is up 9% in shelters with the largest increases being in rural and suburban cities with an increase of 56%.
The good news is that the HUD will be begin to analyze homelessness quarterly (instead of yearly) in order to gain a faster understanding of the economic impact on homelessness. Quarterly reports will be put out by the Homelessness Pulse Project. The project will report on data using a sample of cities and communities.
Here is a snapshot of findings in the first quarter of 2009 (January through March):
Additional Links:
CNNMoney: Homeless families spike in the suburbs
CBS News: More Families Joins Ranks of Homeless
News Release: HUD Issues 2008 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress
The good news is that the HUD will be begin to analyze homelessness quarterly (instead of yearly) in order to gain a faster understanding of the economic impact on homelessness. Quarterly reports will be put out by the Homelessness Pulse Project. The project will report on data using a sample of cities and communities.
Here is a snapshot of findings in the first quarter of 2009 (January through March):
- Of total homeless persons in the study, 55% of the individuals were in household with dependent children.
- Of sheltered homeless persons, 61% were in households with dependent children.
- Of unsheltered homeless persons, 6% were in households with dependent children.
Grants provided under HPRP (Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program) are not intended to provide long-term support for individuals and families, nor will they afford mortgage assistance to homeowners facing foreclosure. Rather, HPRP offers a variety of short- and medium-term financial assistance to those who would otherwise become homeless, many due to sudden economic crisis. This can include short-term rental assistance (up to three months), medium-term rental assistance (up to 18 months), security deposits, utility deposits, utility payments, moving cost assistance, and hotel vouchers. Payments will not be made directly to households, but only to third parties, such as landlords or utility companies.Learn more about how First Place helps families through rental assistance, housing and services.
Additional Links:
CNNMoney: Homeless families spike in the suburbs
CBS News: More Families Joins Ranks of Homeless
News Release: HUD Issues 2008 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress
Friday, May 22, 2009
In the News: Recent Articles of Interest
There have been a quite a few articles lately that we want to share.
From USA Today: School caters to homeless children.
Mustard Seed School in Sacramento caters to children ages 3 to 15 - providing educational services for about a month before a child transfers into public school. First Place started as a similar stop-gap program but over 20 years has grown to enrolling an entire family for up to three years. We are always happy to see similar programs!
From the Washington Post: Poor? Pay up.
This article explains the high costs of poverty and why you have to be rich to be poor. If you keep up with us on Twitter we posted this link a few days ago.
From Seattle Weekly blog: Affordable Housing Going Up in Central District--If It Can Get Its Parking Approved.
Anytime housing for families with children, homeless and low-income households is available it's a great thing. In his post Seattle Weekly blogger Damon Agnos questions why parking is needed at a housing facility for homeless and low-income families. First Place invites anyone with this question to come down for a tour to see why a homeless family would have a car but no home. We host tours every Friday at 11am. Sign up online.
Besides that, 51 units of housing for families is excellent news!
From USA Today: School caters to homeless children.
Mustard Seed School in Sacramento caters to children ages 3 to 15 - providing educational services for about a month before a child transfers into public school. First Place started as a similar stop-gap program but over 20 years has grown to enrolling an entire family for up to three years. We are always happy to see similar programs!
From the Washington Post: Poor? Pay up.
This article explains the high costs of poverty and why you have to be rich to be poor. If you keep up with us on Twitter we posted this link a few days ago.
From Seattle Weekly blog: Affordable Housing Going Up in Central District--If It Can Get Its Parking Approved.
Anytime housing for families with children, homeless and low-income households is available it's a great thing. In his post Seattle Weekly blogger Damon Agnos questions why parking is needed at a housing facility for homeless and low-income families. First Place invites anyone with this question to come down for a tour to see why a homeless family would have a car but no home. We host tours every Friday at 11am. Sign up online.
Besides that, 51 units of housing for families is excellent news!
Monday, May 11, 2009
Seattle Channel Features First Place Panel Discussion
On April 29, 2009, immediately following the First Place Annual Fundraising Breakfast, we hosted a panel discussion featuring local individuals and businesses making big change toward ending homelessness.
The panel featured:
Seattle Channel 21:
First Place hosted this panel as way to further engage individual and businesses in getting involved in ending homelessness. We hope when you watch this, you will be inspired to find a way to get your business or organization involved in social change.
Panel attendees received a packet of information to take home with them, which included facts on homelessness, a 'Take Action' sheet, a copy of the Washington State Report Card on Family Homelessness and a few other informational papers. If you are interested in a copy of this packet, contact Chris Cooper, Director of Marketing and Development at 206-323-6715 ext. 1301.
Over the next few weeks we want to feature a few companies on our blog that do some creative fundraising for First Place. First on our list to share is Car Toys.
The panel featured:
- Bill Block, King County Committee to End Homelessness Project Director
- Tod Leiweke, CEO of Vulcan Sports and Entertainment
- Thach Nguyen, Realtor, Developer and Philanthropist
- James Sun, CEO & Founder of Zoodango.com, Finalist on NBC's "The Apprentice"
- Evelyn Brown, Owner of Xazz Salon and community volunteer
- Anne Keeney, Executive Director of Seattle Jobs Initiative
- Moderated by Linda Byron, KING 5 News
Seattle Channel 21:
| Thursday, May 14, 2009 | 5:00 p.m. |
| Monday, May 18, 2009 | 6:00 a.m. |
| Wednesday, May 20, 2009 | 2:30 a.m. |
| Thursday, May 21, 2009 | 4:30 p.m. |
First Place hosted this panel as way to further engage individual and businesses in getting involved in ending homelessness. We hope when you watch this, you will be inspired to find a way to get your business or organization involved in social change.Panel attendees received a packet of information to take home with them, which included facts on homelessness, a 'Take Action' sheet, a copy of the Washington State Report Card on Family Homelessness and a few other informational papers. If you are interested in a copy of this packet, contact Chris Cooper, Director of Marketing and Development at 206-323-6715 ext. 1301.
Over the next few weeks we want to feature a few companies on our blog that do some creative fundraising for First Place. First on our list to share is Car Toys.
Beat the CFO! The employees of Car Toys have a long-standing tradition of supporting the many vital programs of First Place. Every fall Car Toys employees break out of the office for their annual stress reliever "beat the CFO". For a small donation to First Place employees compete against the CFO in a high-tech virtual golf game, or in years past have taken their chance at hitting a target to dunk the CFO in a less than warm pool. Car Toys CFO Robert Jensen continues to take his dedication to ending family homelessness to a new level. “Keep up the great work,” Jensen tells us, “and we will keep coming up with other ways to help.”
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Gates Foundation Pledges $60 Million to Help End Family Homelessness
The Washington Families Fund is launching a new strategy to prevent and end family homelessness.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have pledged $60 Million over 10 years to the public-private partnership.
The major goal of this initiative will be to reduce the number of homeless families by 50% in the next decade.
Read more here in the Seattle Times.
Read the Gates Foundation Press Release.
First Place is excited to see this partnership in light of the increase in homelessness prevention requests through our rental assistance funds. This month in our first hour of taking rental assistance phone calls - we received 60 calls for support. We normally receive about 35 calls a month, and not all in the first hour. First Place can typically only offer assistance to 4 or 5 families a month.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have pledged $60 Million over 10 years to the public-private partnership.
The major goal of this initiative will be to reduce the number of homeless families by 50% in the next decade.
Read more here in the Seattle Times.
Read the Gates Foundation Press Release.
First Place is excited to see this partnership in light of the increase in homelessness prevention requests through our rental assistance funds. This month in our first hour of taking rental assistance phone calls - we received 60 calls for support. We normally receive about 35 calls a month, and not all in the first hour. First Place can typically only offer assistance to 4 or 5 families a month.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Two new reports on homeless children and families
In our last post, Are there more homeless students in our schools?, we talked about homeless families being invisible to the rest of the population because they stay for long periods of time in non-traditional housing, or they share housing with another family.
Yesterday another article was featured in the NY Times, giving a closer look at how families with children are coping with unstable homes and living in motels month to month. Read that article here: As Jobs Vanish, Motel Rooms Become Home.
Yesterday we also learned that nationally 1 in 50 children experience homelessness in America each year. The report by the National Center on Family Homelessness also ranks all 50 states. And where did Washington fall? At number 25 - right in the middle. Here is an overview on the Washington State report card:
Download full report here: http://www.homelesschildrenamerica.org/
Check out just Washington State here: http://www.firstplaceschool.org/WA_report.pdf
Yesterday another article was featured in the NY Times, giving a closer look at how families with children are coping with unstable homes and living in motels month to month. Read that article here: As Jobs Vanish, Motel Rooms Become Home.
"Motels are a part of the transition process for over 15% of First Place families, some of which live there for a majority of a school-year. In that kind of environment most of these families become exposed to street violence, drug use and other ills that develop the social and emotional traumas that prevents academic excellence or family stability," said Gene Harris, Director of Family Support Services at First Place.
Yesterday we also learned that nationally 1 in 50 children experience homelessness in America each year. The report by the National Center on Family Homelessness also ranks all 50 states. And where did Washington fall? At number 25 - right in the middle. Here is an overview on the Washington State report card:
- 9,575 children in grades Kindergarten through 8 are homeless.
- 1 in 26 children do not know where they will get their next meal.
- Less than 25% of homeless children will graduate from High School.
- 56.5% of homeless families with children struggle with transportation to and from school.
Download full report here: http://www.homelesschildrenamerica.org/
Check out just Washington State here: http://www.firstplaceschool.org/WA_report.pdf
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Are there more homeless students in our schools?
Today we wanted to share this article with you from MSNBC.com: ‘Tidal wave’ of homeless students hits schools.
More and more we have been seeing articles like this one reporting on the rising numbers of family homelessness and homeless children attending public schools.
This article is a great snapshot of what families in Seattle and King County are dealing with right now. First Place is a unique agency which serves the needs of the entire family in their struggle with homelessness and extreme poverty. We decided to take a few of the themes in the article and tell you a little bit more about what that means and how First Place helps children and families with their struggle.
Read the article here.
Learn more about First Place on our website, or by reading our blog profile.
Housing – Family homelessness can be invisible
The MSNBC.com article mentions one family living out of a garage, and another which is living with friends. Family homelessness is often invisible to the larger community because many of the families are living in non-traditional places (such as garages) which are not included in a One Night Count. (Learn about the Local and National One Night Counts)
First Place works with parents to move them from emergency shelters and temporary homes (such as a garage, a car, or friends house) and into stable housing. All families enrolled in our services work with a case manager who supports parents on job training and education, job placement, housing, life skills and health needs. First Place also has a limited number of apartment units to house families with school-age children.
Learn more about the invisible homeless in this Change.org blog post: Full House: More Families Shackin' Up.
Trauma caused by instability
When children have adult worries such where they will be sleeping and if they will eat dinner, they are not able to concentrate at school, or even sleep at night. The extreme stress and trauma also affects their physical health, their ability to learn, their emotional and social behavior, and cognitive development. Many homeless families are a single parent fleeing domestic violence or abuse which also causes trauma in children. At First Place, we work with children on their social and emotional development. We help them feel they are in a safe and trusted environment and provide counseling and art therapy to help work through this difficult time.
How trauma affects education
Many students attending First Place come to our school two to three grade levels behind their peers in public schools due to the trauma and stress of poverty and homelessness. First Place works on stabilizing the emotional needs of the students and their academic needs. In addition to the school day, many students have a volunteer tutor or mentor who spends one hour a week with the student. We also provide 40 hours of tutoring to students through Knowledge Points. At the end of the 40 hours, students gain an average one grade level in reading or math.
Teasing at school is another trauma that children endure as a result of instability in their lives. At First Place, most of the kids are in the same situation – so teasing about having unbrushed hair or wearing the same clothes every day just doesn’t happen.
Health, nutrition & basic needs
Children and families living in extreme poverty and unstable housing often lack proper nutrition, regular meals and sometimes aren’t able to bath regularly. Stress and trauma breaks down the immune system and especially affects children who become susceptible to colds, flu and more.
First Place has a nurse practitioner on-site to take care of the health needs of the children. We also provide breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack. We also provide school bus transportation to First Place and back to their home in the evening. Throughout the year we provide clothing, shoes and hygiene items. We also work with parents to ensure their living situation supports the daily hygiene and health needs of their family.
Is Seattle seeing a ‘Tidal Wave’ of homeless students?
Answer: It’s hard to tell. First Place called Ruth McFadden, the district homeless liaison for Seattle Public Schools, and learned that most of the calls coming in are from new families and that a lot of families who were previously asking for assistance have been able to move forward. Ruth also mentioned that some of the addresses were new to her – meaning that the families asking for assistance might not be living in shelters and are possibly living in non-traditional homes mentioned at the beginning of the article.
Information about the rights of homeless students in Seattle Public School can be found here: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/homeless/index.dxml
First Place is seeing an increase in phone calls asking for assistance, and like many organizations, is not able to expand our services to meet the need due to the current economy.
Why First Place?
First Place is a tuition free private school especially designed to meet the needs of homeless and low-income students and provide support to the entire family. Our goal is to help children successfully transition into public school and to stabilize the entire family. Students transition into public school within one to three years of their time at First Place.
View a recent Success Story of a student who recently transitioned into a Seattle public school here: Proud Parent Say Thank You.
We invite you to learn more. First Place offers tour on Fridays at 11am. RSVP at tours@firstplaceschool.org.
More and more we have been seeing articles like this one reporting on the rising numbers of family homelessness and homeless children attending public schools.
This article is a great snapshot of what families in Seattle and King County are dealing with right now. First Place is a unique agency which serves the needs of the entire family in their struggle with homelessness and extreme poverty. We decided to take a few of the themes in the article and tell you a little bit more about what that means and how First Place helps children and families with their struggle.
Read the article here.
Learn more about First Place on our website, or by reading our blog profile.
Housing – Family homelessness can be invisible
The MSNBC.com article mentions one family living out of a garage, and another which is living with friends. Family homelessness is often invisible to the larger community because many of the families are living in non-traditional places (such as garages) which are not included in a One Night Count. (Learn about the Local and National One Night Counts)
First Place works with parents to move them from emergency shelters and temporary homes (such as a garage, a car, or friends house) and into stable housing. All families enrolled in our services work with a case manager who supports parents on job training and education, job placement, housing, life skills and health needs. First Place also has a limited number of apartment units to house families with school-age children.
Learn more about the invisible homeless in this Change.org blog post: Full House: More Families Shackin' Up.
Trauma caused by instability
When children have adult worries such where they will be sleeping and if they will eat dinner, they are not able to concentrate at school, or even sleep at night. The extreme stress and trauma also affects their physical health, their ability to learn, their emotional and social behavior, and cognitive development. Many homeless families are a single parent fleeing domestic violence or abuse which also causes trauma in children. At First Place, we work with children on their social and emotional development. We help them feel they are in a safe and trusted environment and provide counseling and art therapy to help work through this difficult time.
How trauma affects education
Many students attending First Place come to our school two to three grade levels behind their peers in public schools due to the trauma and stress of poverty and homelessness. First Place works on stabilizing the emotional needs of the students and their academic needs. In addition to the school day, many students have a volunteer tutor or mentor who spends one hour a week with the student. We also provide 40 hours of tutoring to students through Knowledge Points. At the end of the 40 hours, students gain an average one grade level in reading or math.
Teasing at school is another trauma that children endure as a result of instability in their lives. At First Place, most of the kids are in the same situation – so teasing about having unbrushed hair or wearing the same clothes every day just doesn’t happen.
Health, nutrition & basic needs
Children and families living in extreme poverty and unstable housing often lack proper nutrition, regular meals and sometimes aren’t able to bath regularly. Stress and trauma breaks down the immune system and especially affects children who become susceptible to colds, flu and more.
First Place has a nurse practitioner on-site to take care of the health needs of the children. We also provide breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack. We also provide school bus transportation to First Place and back to their home in the evening. Throughout the year we provide clothing, shoes and hygiene items. We also work with parents to ensure their living situation supports the daily hygiene and health needs of their family.
Is Seattle seeing a ‘Tidal Wave’ of homeless students?
Answer: It’s hard to tell. First Place called Ruth McFadden, the district homeless liaison for Seattle Public Schools, and learned that most of the calls coming in are from new families and that a lot of families who were previously asking for assistance have been able to move forward. Ruth also mentioned that some of the addresses were new to her – meaning that the families asking for assistance might not be living in shelters and are possibly living in non-traditional homes mentioned at the beginning of the article.
Information about the rights of homeless students in Seattle Public School can be found here: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/homeless/index.dxml
First Place is seeing an increase in phone calls asking for assistance, and like many organizations, is not able to expand our services to meet the need due to the current economy.
Why First Place?
First Place is a tuition free private school especially designed to meet the needs of homeless and low-income students and provide support to the entire family. Our goal is to help children successfully transition into public school and to stabilize the entire family. Students transition into public school within one to three years of their time at First Place.
View a recent Success Story of a student who recently transitioned into a Seattle public school here: Proud Parent Say Thank You.
We invite you to learn more. First Place offers tour on Fridays at 11am. RSVP at tours@firstplaceschool.org.
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