Outreach Continues

Most Needed Items in May

AWAIC needs your help! This May, drop off new and unused items from the list below, no appointment required. Accepting items all month, Monday - Friday from 8 AM-5 pm.

Leggings (Women’s Sizes XS-3XL) | Shoes (Women’s Sizes 7-10)
 

Remember, all other donations require a donation appointment. Thank you so much for helping survivors of domestic violence and their families!

P.S.: If you want to help without dropping off, consider shopping our Amazon Wishlist!

As Anchorage’s mass shelter winds down, workers push to smooth transition for homeless residents

"The Sullivan opened as an emergency shelter in 2020 when COVID-19 cut capacity at other shelters. It closed abruptly last summer, only to reopen months later. McLaughlin said it’s important for Anchorage officials to follow through on a goal of opening a permanent, low-barrier shelter by this fall.  

“We don’t have a place to rest right now when we close these doors,” she said.  

As Monday approaches, the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness is giving out hundreds of care packages to people leaving the shelter. The packages have sleeping bags, a waterproof document container, food and personal hygiene kits.

The coalition is looking for volunteers to put together more kits to be given away at upcoming outreach events. More information on how to help out is on its website, ACEH.org/volunteer." Continue Reading

Staff Refresher Training Available

Is your organization having trouble with data quality? Do you and your staff want better data but don’t know how to improve it? ICA will provide support! The ICA Alaska team provides refresher training for data entry staff. 

If you would like more information about AKHMIS data entry refresher training, please contact the AKHMIS Helpdesk at [email protected]

Free Training Opportunity: How The Social Security Administration Can Help Those Re-Entering The Community After Incarceration.

Real-time, person-specific data on homelessness is catalytic

So how do communities assess the quality of by-name data?

Learning alongside communities for eight years, Community Solutions has come to understand that the quality of a data system is influenced by four key pillars.

Each of the components listed below ensures that communities have the information they need and that practices are in place to sustainably reduce and end homelessness. 

1️⃣ Effective outreach systems
2️⃣ Homeless service provider participation
3️⃣ Policies and procedures
4️⃣ Data infrastructure

Built for Zero communities are demonstrating it is possible to make progress toward a data-driven system where everyone experiencing homelessness is known by name and in real-time. 

Learn about the key elements of achieving quality data and the progress communities across the country are making.

HUD Outlines its Action Plan to Remove Unnecessary Barriers to Housing for People with Criminal Records

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Marcia L. Fudge announced further steps HUD will take to ensure that qualified people are not denied the opportunity to access housing solely due to a criminal history record. In the weeks ahead, HUD will issue a Notice of Proposed Rule Making in which it proposes to change its regulations governing public housing agencies and HUD-subsidized housing providers to prevent unnecessary denials of housing assistance to people with criminal history records.

HUD will issue new guidance and technical assistance to assist PHAs and HUD-affiliated owners in determining what convictions are relevant to health and safety and how to conduct an individualized assessment when reviewing criminal history records. HUD will also provide technical assistance to encourage grantees, PHAs, and housing owners to use HUD programs to provide housing and services that support people’s successful reentry from prisons and jails to the community, which enhances public safety. Continue Reading

NLIHC’s Diane Yentel Testifies in Support of Bipartisan Legislation Addressing the Affordable Housing Crisis

NLIHC President and CEO Diane Yentel testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs today at a hearing, “Building Consensus to Address Housing Challenges,” in support of bipartisan legislation to solve the affordable housing crisis.

Appearing before the Committee along with two other witnesses – Lou Tisler, executive director of the National Neighborhood Watch Association, and Vanessa Brown Calder, the director of opportunity and family policy studies at the Cato Institute – Diane advocated for an array of bipartisan bills designed to ensure that the lowest-income and most marginalized renters have access to stable, safe, affordable housing.

“Rents have skyrocketed, eviction filings are rising and surpassing pre-pandemic levels, and homelessness is increasing,” said Diane in her testimony. “The country’s lowest-income people are struggling to stay housed, and Congress’s inaction costs us all. But quick, bipartisan action by this Congress can – just as it did during the pandemic – save lives, save money, and provide housing relief for many. I urge this Committee and this Congress to act quickly and, at minimum, advance the multitude of bipartisan housing bills before us.” Continue Reading