Report Release: Needs of unaccompanied youths in Illinois

- Watch the press conference on YouTube.

- Listen to the press conference as a podcast on your computer or download it on iTunes.

More than half of the homeless youths who sought help in Illinois
had to be turned away due to insufficient resources, according to a
statewide survey of youth providers released Dec. 20, 2007 by the
Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.

A CCH study done with input from 24 youth providers across Illinois
found that 2,895 youths (48.7%) were served in fiscal year 2007. But
another 3,088 had to be turned away – 51.6% of the youths who sought
assistance.

Of the 2,895 youths able to access services, only 1,077 – 37.2% –
were able to get housed. Providers say the greatest unmet service needs
are sufficient beds for homeless youths (38%) and employment assistance
programs (22%). But when teens were served, 87% of those who exited
youth programs were able to move into safe, stable housing.

In an effort endorsed by the Illinois Department of Human Services
(IDHS), CCH worked with youth providers across the state to analyze how
well providers are able to meet the needs of “unaccompanied youths” –
teens alone and homeless on the street. Seventy-seven percent of the
state’s 31 youth providers participated in the survey, including all
seven located in Chicago.

Several Chicago youths who were helped off the street told their personal stories during the 20-minute press conference.

“At times I felt like giving up, but I’m a motivated person and I
got through my struggles,” said Lakevia Taylor, who is now a sophomore
honor student at Northeastern Illinois University. She was homeless for
two years before she secured housing last year from Hull House Emerge.

Attending the press conference were youths and staff members from
provider agencies in Chicago and the suburbs, including The Night
Ministry, Hull House, Unity Parenting and Counseling, Aunt Martha’s
Youth Service Center, NCO Youth & Family Services and Wheaton Youth
Outreach.

The report recommends increased funding to double the number of beds
for homeless youth – 318 state-funded beds are now available, with a
total of 352 beds reported statewide. That serves only 9% of the 4,102
youths who are homeless on any given day in Illinois, according to a
2005 study led by IDHS, CCH and the Survey Research Lab at the
University of Illinois at Chicago.

State Rep. Greg Harris, whose North Side district includes city
neighborhoods where many homeless youths live, announced that he would
work to secure $7 million increase in state funding for homeless youth
programs. The state now funds these at $4.7 million a year.