Posts Tagged ‘homelessness’

Twilight Star Takes Runaway Role To Heart, Planning To Invest In Troubled Teens

Friday, January 21st, 2011

“Anytime I hear that somebody’s really rich, the first question is ‘Do you do anything with it? Or do you, like, chill? You just sit on it?’” She is thinking carefully, strategically, about how best to put her own contribution to use, and has a plan—inspired by her researches for the role of a runaway in the sex trade—to set up a network of halfway houses to help those who want to recover and get back on their feet. “That would be amazing,” she says. “Right now it’s the thing I feel most connected to.”

What do you think?

Does this impact your view of Stewart? Do you agree that having money obligates you to “do something with it?”

Combating Homelessness From Every Angle

Monday, June 28th, 2010

The Obama administration gets into the nitty-gritty of the helping the nation’s staggering number of homeless citizens.

  • The homeless population in the United States is growing and does not just include single adults but also countless American families.
  • On June 22nd, the Obama administration unveiled a plan to combat increasing homelessness. The plan, called “Opening Doors,” aims to eradicate homelessness for single adults, families, children, and veterans.
  • The first step will be to examine what strategies have worked in cities and counties across the nation. Chicago’s push for affordable housing was so successful that the Obama administration hopes to apply it nationwide.

Facts & Figures

  • The number of homeless families had increased by 30% in the past two years
  • The number of homeless veterans of the Vietnam war is greater than the number that died in it.

Best Quote

“This is a tragedy we can solve.” – Shaun Donovan, Chair, Inter-agency Council on Homelessness.

Doing Homework With No Home

Monday, October 5th, 2009

The federal government tried to look out for homeless students by requiring certain allowances be made to keep them in school. But in a bad economy, who should foot the bill for this crucial assistance?

  • In the wake of the recession, the number of homeless children enrolled in public schools has surged. The trickle-down effects of layoffs and foreclosures have begun to strain the resources of public school districts as they struggle to keep kids enrolled while their families deal with financial ruin.
  • Federal law requires that a special liaison to the homeless be appointed in every school district. In addition, districts must immediately place any student that enrolls without requiring proof of residence, and they must allow students to remain enrolled at the same school even when their families are forced to move.
  • Assistance can include special car or bus services and even special administrative positions created just to manage the school-related obstacles transient children face. Some of the cost of these services is absorbed by grants and federal aid, but still they present budget issues which are sometimes visited upon local taxpayers.

Facts & Figures

  • Since 2007, according to the Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth, the number of homeless children seems to have increased by 75-100% in many school districts.
  • In the 2006-2007 school year, there were 679,000 homeless students reported. In spring of 2009, there were more than 1 million.
  • A school district in San Antonio saw the number of homeless students double this year to 1,000 in the first two weeks of school alone.

Best Quote

“We see 8-year-olds telling Mom not to worry, don’t cry.” – Bill Murdock, Chief Executive of Eblen-Kimmel Charities