On Tuesday, July 2, 2024, NN4Y’s National Youth Advisory Council (NYAC) met with HUD’s Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman and Senior Advisor Richard Cho. The NYAC shared their recommendations for policy, regulation, and funding for HUD initiatives targeting youth homelessness.
The NYAC is a group of young people aged 18-24 with lived experience of homelessness. They wrote the recommendations shared at this meeting, and their work shapes NN4Y’s policy priorities.
Attendees
- Dane Valentine (ze/zir), NYAC Advisor, Oklahoma
- Etelvina (Liz) Arevalo (she/her), NYAC Advisor, Minnesota
- Hannah Bollack (she/her), NYAC Advisor, Maryland
- Dash Togi (she/her), NYAC Advisor, Alaska
- Darla Bardine (she/her), NN4Y Executive Director
- Trinady Maddock (she/her), NN4Y Policy Associate
NYAC Recommendations Include
- Require HUD Continuums of Care (CoCs) to designate funding to compensate youth members of Youth Action Boards (YABs) and to pay for professional development.
- Improve flexibility for CoCs in the use of Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project (YHDP) funds so that new housing and service options for young people can be tested to expand access to responsive housing and service options in communities where traditional adult HUD models aren’t working.
- Through the Notice of Funding Opportunity, create separate outcome measures for youth-serving projects that align with USICH’s four core outcomes. This will ensure the effectiveness of youth-serving organizations is accurately measured.
- Waive or significantly reduce match requirements for both years of a YHDP grant.
- Issue guidance and sample forms related to self-verification and living in unsafe situations.
See the full list of recommendations here.
We would like to thank Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman and Senior Advisory Richard Cho for meeting with us and taking steps to end youth homelessness in America. For more information on NN4Y policy priorities, visit our Take Action Center.