Due to the significant impact Hurricane Harvey made in the Houston area, the Poverty in America class decided to make a difference through a “Hurricane Relief Project.”

The students worked together to research organizations making a difference in areas that have been affected by natural disasters such as Florida, Puerto Rico, and Texas. Each student was required to submit a proposal on behalf of the organization they researched. The students then used this research to lobby for the organization they represented to be the winning proposal. To our benefit, the Coalition for the Homeless was named as one of the agencies to receive a donation raised by the students and faculty.

The students recognized the incredible impact Harvey made to our homeless system. During our recent State of Homelessness breakfast, the Coalition revealed the 2018 Homeless Count & Survey results which showed an increase for the first time since 2011. The majority of the increase was seen in the unsheltered homeless population; 18% of unsheltered homeless individuals surveyed on the night of the Homeless Count reported that their homelessness was due to Hurricane Harvey.

“Hurricane Harvey was a major disruption to the work of The Way Home, both in terms of diverting resources and contributing to the increase in unsheltered homelessness,” said Marilyn Brown, President/CEO of the Coalition. “In just 41 days, partners of The Way Home shifted resources to successfully prevent homelessness for nearly 1,000 people who had nowhere to go after the storm. But this had a huge impact on the homeless programs already in place and was a devastating distraction from our planned work in 2018.”

The Coalition is honored to be chosen as one of the recipients of the ’2018 “Poverty in America” Donation Project.’ Thank you to the students of Charles E. Jordan High School for your support!