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A Prevention-Centered Approach To Homelessness Assistance: A Paradigm Shift?, Dennis P. Culhane, Stephen Metraux, Thomas Byrne
A Prevention-Centered Approach To Homelessness Assistance: A Paradigm Shift?, Dennis P. Culhane, Stephen Metraux, Thomas Byrne
Dennis P. Culhane
Prevention has long been cited as an important part of any strategy to end homelessness. Nonetheless, effective prevention initiatives have proven difficult to implement in practice. The lack of a prevention-oriented policy framework has resulted in responses to homelessness that focus primarily on assisting those who have already lost their housing and, consequently, to the institutionalization of homelessness. Recent Federal legislation, however, signals an emergent paradigm shift towards prevention-based approaches to homelessness. This paper explores the conceptual underpinnings of successful prevention initiatives and reviews practice-based evidence from several successful prevention-oriented approaches to homelessness in the United States and Europe. We …
Ending Family Homelessness In Massachusetts: A New Approach For The Emergency Assistance Program, Dennis P. Culhane, Thomas Byrne
Ending Family Homelessness In Massachusetts: A New Approach For The Emergency Assistance Program, Dennis P. Culhane, Thomas Byrne
Dennis P. Culhane
This paper explores the current opportunity for policy reform of the Emergency Assistance (EA) system in Massachusetts. Recent initiatives by the state are described that have provided a context for systems change. Some of the challenges posed by the current program are discussed, particularly the lack of cost containment, and the resulting fact that significant public resources are spent supporting long-term stays in shelters and motels, which are not good for families or children. After an exploration of funding and resource issues, the paper concludes by establishing the foundation for changing the current system into one that would be outcome …