Quarterly Community Update

Dear friends,

Happy new year! I want to take a moment to share how thankful I am for the generosity and continued partnership throughout 2019 and beyond. I am so proud of what we have accomplished together — here are just a few highlights from last year:

• The Community Foundation joined with Mayor Bowser’s Interagency Council on Homelessness to launch the District’s first-of-its-kind public-private Partnership to End Homelessness.

• The Children’s Opportunity Fund doubled its impact for a total of $1.2 million invested towards closing the opportunity gap for children and families in Montgomery County.

• The Workforce Development Collaborative celebrated its 10th anniversary by updating its strategy to focus on eliminating inequities based on race, ethnicity, or gender and providing new career pathways and wealth-building opportunities for local workers.

• The Resilience Fund mobilized community support for nonprofits providing emergency cash and food assistance to our neighbors during the partial Federal Government shutdown.

Last quarter (October-December 2019), our community of givers collectively awarded nearly $20.4 million in grants to organizations serving the most critical needs of our communities. With your support, The Community Foundation continued its critical work to Build Thriving Communities in the Greater Washington region by awarding new grants from:

• The Resilience Fund to increase civic engagement, support advocacy on behalf of immigrants and asylum seekers, and expand outreach and services to marginalized communities;

• The 2020 Count DMV In Census Project to ensure an equitable future for our region through a fair and accurate Census count by supporting education, outreach, and assistance focused on hard-to-count communities; and

• The Partnership to End Homelessness in the form of “flex funding” to help nonprofits expedite housing placement and increase stabilization for single adults experiencing homelessness.

I hope to see you at our 2020 Celebration of Philanthropy on March 12, where we will recognize the collective effort of our region’s nonprofits, donors, and community leaders who work to make our communities stronger. We are excited to present the 2020 Civic Spirit Award to the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation at the Celebration. Sponsorship packages are available for individuals and businesses — please contact Emily Davis at [email protected].

It is our generous donors who make this all possible! Together, we are building a more vibrant, equitable, and enriching community for all who call the Greater Washington region their home.

Sincerely,

Tonia Wellons
Interim President and CEO

New Grant Opportunities for Nonprofits Serving Greater Washington

The Community Foundation has opened its Spring 2020 Grant Round and is now accepting proposals for grants from the Fund for Children, Youth, and Families; Spring Creek Environmental and Preservation Fund; and the David Bradt Nonprofit Education Fund's Nonprofit Leadership Award. Additionally, the Resilience Fund has opened a call for ideas and the Partnership to End Homelessness has released an RFI related to advocacy and public will building efforts focused on homelessness and affordable housing. 

The Partnership to End Homelessness Awards First Grants to Local Nonprofits Housing Single Adults

The Partnership to End Homelessness is excited to announce the first round of grants for “flex funding” programs at local nonprofits that provide Permanent Supportive Housing. Flex funding grants will help expedite housing placement and increase stabilization for single adults that have been matched to housing resources. While rent is covered by government programs, small but critical expenses like moving expenses, fees to obtain identification documents, or transportation to look at available units are not. Many times, these small fees can mean a serious delay in a person securing housing or can put an additional burden on the nonprofit provider.

This two-year pilot program seeks to demonstrate that flex funding can do one or more of the following:

• Reduce the amount of time it takes to place single adults experiencing homelessness into Permanent Supportive Housing

• Decrease the number of single adults experiencing homelessness by helping them obtain and/or maintain Permanent Supportive Housing

Flex funds, specifically for single adults, were identified as a high-need during conversations with District nonprofits, advocates, and government agencies. Because fewer resources are available for single adults and the City has prioritized bringing more Permanent Supportive Housing units online this year, these flex funds are both timely and critical to help us reach our goal of ending homelessness in the District.

The Grantmaking Fund is one of the strategic approaches to achieving the Partnership to End Homelessness’ mission to end homelessness in DC. The Fund aims to fill critical funding gaps, support innovative programs, meet emerging needs, build nonprofit provider and developer capacity, and support advocacy efforts.

With the importance of these flex funds in mind, we are proud to award the following organizations up to $50,000 over two years to expedite housing placement and stabilize single adults in Permanent Supportive Housing.

• Friendship Place – Established in 1991, Friendship Place’s mission is to empower people who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness to attain stable housing and rebuild their lives.

• Miriam’s Kitchen – Established in 1983, Miriam’s mission is to end chronic homelessness in The District.

• Open Arms Housing Inc. (OAH) – Established in 1997, OAH's mission is to provide permanent homes with supportive services for women experiencing homelessness with a wide range of mental health issues.

• Pathways to Housing DC – Established in 2004, Pathways to Housing DC’s mission is to transform individual lives by ending homelessness and supporting recovery for people with disabilities.

We are incredibly grateful to our donors who have contributed more than $1.8 million to seed the Grantmaking Fund. If you would like to donate to the Partnership, please contact Angela Willingham at [email protected].

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About The Partnership to End Homelessness

The Partnership to End Homelessness, led by the Greater Washington Community Foundation and the District Government’s Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH), brings together the public and private sectors to advance effective and innovative solutions to ensure homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring in DC.

What is Permanent Supportive Housing?

If you asked Pathways to Housing DC outreach specialist Waldon Adams what ends homelessness, he’d have a very simple answer. Housing. That’s because it worked for him. For many years, Waldon experienced homelessness, losing jobs and places to stay while battling an addiction to alcohol and drugs. One day, he visited a support center on 14th Street NW and the staff there connected him with his own apartment — with no preconditions. Having his own home gave Waldon stability, and this led to other positive changes in his life. Today, Waldon works to help others like himself exit homelessness by connecting them with housing.

Waldon’s experience — and that of thousands of other people like him in DC — tells us that housing ends homelessness. But what should that housing look like? For many of our neighbors experiencing chronic homelessness, the answer is permanent supportive housing.

Over the course of a year, approximately 4,000 adults experience chronic homelessness in DC.

People experiencing chronic homelessness have been homeless for at least one year, or four times within three years, and they struggle with complex health challenges such as mental illness, addiction, physical disabilities, or other chronic conditions that make them highly vulnerable to becoming homeless. These challenges also create barriers that can make it difficult for them to maintain stable housing.

Permanent supportive housing (or PSH) is a tool to end chronic homelessness. It works by pairing housing with wrap around services to help people experiencing chronic homelessness obtain affordable housing and maintain it long-term. PSH services are voluntary, flexible, and individualized to help people achieve their personal goals, such as stabilizing and improving their health, gaining employment, re-connecting with family, and participating in the community.

The Partnership to End Homelessness seeks to advance data-driven and evidence-based practices — and we know from the evidence that permanent supportive housing works:

• PSH improves long-term housing stability. Studies show that at least 75 percent of people in permanent supportive housing remain in housing for 18 months or longer. In DC, over 97 percent of people who exit the homeless services system to permanent supportive housing maintain their housing for at least six months.

• PSH improves health and well-being. People experiencing chronic homelessness who receive housing combined with supportive services make fewer hospital and emergency room visits and can better access routine mental and physical health supports.

• PSH is cost-effective. People experiencing chronic homelessness are frequent users of emergency services. Studies have shown that providing people with permanent supportive housing lowers public costs on average by nearly 50 percent by reducing use of shelters, hospitals, and jails.

DC has invested in ending chronic homelessness by funding comprehensive street outreach and case management services, creating an coordinated assessment and prioritization strategy to match individuals to permanent supportive housing, and increasing the supply of rental subsidy vouchers. The city has also worked to build strong private sector partnerships with affordable housing developers and property owners. DC incentivizes developers to provide units for permanent supportive housing by financing affordable housing projects and offering backup funding to property owners to cover any the costs of unpaid rent and unit damages.

DC’s strategy to end chronic homelessness in DC is working: since 2015, chronic homelessness has decreased by fifteen percent and 2,540 single adults experiencing chronic homelessness were moved into permanent supportive housing.

Despite this progress, we know that we need more permanent supportive housing in DC to meet the need. Join The Partnership to End Homelessness to increase the supply of Permanent Supportive Housing to #EndHomelessnessDC.

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How You Can Help Create More Permanent Supportive Housing in DC

• Partnership grantees such as Friendship Place, Miriam’s Kitchen, Pathways to Housing DC, and Open Arms Housing — are among many local organizations committed to providing high-quality permanent supportive housing in DC. By investing in The Partnership’s Grantmaking Fund you can support their crucial work while supporting our efforts to create a system that houses people more quickly and has the number of units we need to end homelessness in DC.

• Participating in the Partnership’s Impact Investment can aid in bringing financial resources to assist in the fight to end homelessness and housing insecurity by increasing the production of deeply affordable and supportive housing.

• Advocacy from the community is critical to ensuring that the city continues to invest in permanent supportive housing. Join the Partnership mailing list to be alerted to opportunities for action.

The Truth About Chronic Homelessness and The Solution

As a part of The Partnership to End Homelessness’ work to educate and engage donors and private sector investors, we host a regular learning series focused on issues related to housing and homelessness. The series features experts on topics such as family homelessness, chronic homelessness, racial equity, and more. To learn about future events, please contact Angela Willingham at [email protected].

Our panel featured Neil Albert (DowntownDC BID), Rhonda Whitaker (an advocate with lived experience), Schroeder Stribling (ICH and N Street Village), and Scott Schenkelberg (Miriam's Kitchen). Tonia Wellons, our Interim President and CEO, moderated the discussion.

On December 4, The Partnership to End Homelessness hosted our third learning series event, focused on The Truth About Chronic Homelessness. Chronic homelessness is defined as a person living with a disabling condition — such as mental illness, substance abuse disorders, or physical disabilities — a person who has experienced homelessness continuously for a year or more, or someone who has had four separate episodes of homelessness in three years.

Many people have a specific picture in mind when they think about someone who is experiencing chronic homelessness. Unfortunately, there are many misconceptions and a general lack of awareness around solutions. To help event participants to better understand who are people experiencing chronic homelessness, our Interim President and CEO, Tonia Wellons, opened the conversation with some helpful data points.

First, Tonia pointed out that it is not just single men that experience chronic homelessness. In the District:

• 13% of people experiencing chronic homelessness are with families,

• 72% of women experiencing homelessness are chronically homelessness, and

• Many people experiencing chronic homelessness are elderly (over the age of 62).

Tonia also highlighted data from a recent survey of people experiencing homelessness which found that nearly 40% of interviewees had worked and wanted to work, and that the loss of a job was the reason they had become homeless.

To help continue the conversation, we had an outstanding panel of experts join us to help participants learn about the solutions to chronic homelessness, including Permanent Supportive Housing. Permanent Supportive Housing, often referred to as PSH, is affordable housing combined with supportive services like case management and health care. Research has shown that PSH is not only effective at ending a person’s homelessness but can also improve health outcomes and save the system money. In the District, PSH has a 93% success rate and costs about half of what it would for someone to remain homeless for a year.

Speaking directly to the audience of business leaders and philanthropists, the panel highlighted an important opportunity and role for the private sector — funding advocacy. To take solutions to scale, we need public and private funding that is proportionate to the number of people who need housing and supports. To get to that point, we need to support nonprofit advocacy organizations that can raise the issue and continue working to make sure we understand the need and have proof of what works. One of our panelists, Scott Schenkelberg said it best when he said:

“Fund advocacy. It creates real change and creates a better for system for ending homelessness.”

Below are a few highlights from the event and information about how to get involved in our efforts to #EndHomelessnessDC.

“ “We have goals. We have families. We are people. I lost my job and became homeless. I got another job, but couldn’t afford a home. I was homeless for 25 years, but no one knew. I took later shifts to have a place to be warm.” - Rhonda Whitaker, Advocate with lived experience

“It costs $40,000 per year to keep someone homeless in DC. And Permanent Supportive Housing is cost effective - it costs $23,000 per year. A savings of almost 50%. And we know it works - PSH has a 93% success rate. ” - Scott Schenkelberg, CEO, Miriam’s Kitchen

“We are working with business owners in the DowntownDC BID to make them aware of resources available to people experiencing homelessness. We want the business community to engage and treat them as our brothers and sisters.” - Neil Albert, President & Chief Executive Officer, DowntownDC Business Improvement District

“The rate we transition people out of shelter is not keeping up with the rate of people coming into the shelter. We will not charity our way out of this problem...it is going to take all of us working together.” - Schroeder Stribling, Chief Executive Officer, N Street Village and Co-Chair, Executive Council, DC ICH

”We’re looking for champions. We’re extending the invite to you today to join us in the Partnership to End Homelessness.” -Tonia Wellons, Interim President and CEO, Greater Washington Community Foundation
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JOIN US

If you are inspired and want to get involved, we invite you to join the Partnership to End Homelessness. Contact us or visit EndHomelessnessDC.org for more ways to contribute to the solution.

Charitable giving in D.C. is well below the national average

By Tonia Wellons for the Washington Post Local Opinions

Tonia Wellons is interim president and chief executive of the Greater Washington Community Foundation.

The District is a magnet for some of the nation’s wealthiest and most powerful people. It’s also home to world-class museums, top-flight thinkers and the national headquarters for many of our nation’s most prominent nonprofits.

But even with these tremendous resources, we are conspicuously behind the curve when it comes to one important measure: generosity.

What is Housing First?

What does it mean to be “ready for housing”? Historically, housing programs for people experiencing homelessness would have shared a list of criteria like this: sober for 6 months or more; taking all prescribed medications; completion of a life skills program; and proof of stable employment. But, imagine that you are a person experiencing homelessness. How will you look for a job when you have to bring all of your belongings with you to the interview? How will you keep a job when the shelter across town where you stay requires that you line up for a bed by 4 p.m. every day, or if you’re afraid to sleep because you are worried about your safety? How will you keep up with your medical appointments when your ID, health insurance card, and phone can easily be lost or stolen because you have no place safe to keep them? And on top of all of that, imagine that you are one of the 30 percent of adults experiencing homelessness in DC who are struggling with a severe mental illness while you try to accomplish all of these tasks.

Housing First is an approach that centers on the belief that everyone is ready for housing — right now.

The theory is simple — people need basic necessities like a safe place to live before they are able to work successfully toward any other goals, such as getting a job, managing a monthly budget, improving mental health, or getting sober.

Housing First was introduced in New York City in 1992 by Dr. Sam Tsemberis, and brought to DC in 2004 by Pathways to Housing DC, a Partnership to End Homelessness grantee. In 2008, DC adopted Housing First practices — and today, all permanent supportive housing programs that receive funding from the DC government — and from the Partnership to End Homelessness — follow this evidence-based model.

Housing First moves people experiencing homelessness from the streets or shelters into permanent housing, while providing supportive services to help residents obtain and maintain housing stability and improve their lives. The Housing First model is:

• Evidence-based. Clients in Housing First programs access housing faster than clients in traditional housing programs. They are also more likely to remain stably housed. Clients also report an increase in perceived levels of autonomy, choice, and control in Housing First programs, and a majority of clients are found to participate in the optional supportive services provided, often resulting in greater housing stability.

• Targeted. The model prioritizes permanent housing placements for people who are experiencing chronic homelessness.

• Low barrier. Clients do not have to participate in services, maintain sobriety, or undergo psychiatric treatment in order to get or maintain their housing.

• Driven by client choice. Clients select their own housing and hold a lease. They decide what supportive services they would like. This ability to choose helps clients feel safe, in control of their environment, and more inclined to consider using supportive services.

Housing First works and is a key approach to any effort to end homelessness. Join the Partnership in supporting organizations that follow this model.

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How You Can Help Support Housing First in DC

• Partnership grantees such as Friendship Place, Miriam’s Kitchen, Pathways to Housing DC, and Open Arms Housing — are among many local organizations committed to providing high-quality permanent supportive housing in DC. By investing in The Partnership’s Grantmaking Fund you can support their crucial work while supporting our efforts to create a system that houses people more quickly and has the number of units we need to end homelessness in DC.

• Participating in the Partnership’s Impact Investment can aid in bringing financial resources to assist in the fight to end homelessness and housing insecurity by increasing the production of deeply affordable and supportive housing.

• Advocacy from the community is critical to ensuring that the city continues to invest in permanent supportive housing. Join the Partnership mailing list to be alerted to opportunities for action.

What is Affordable Housing?

“We have goals. We have families. We are people. I lost my job and became homeless. I got another job, but couldn’t afford a home. I was homeless for 25 years, but no one knew. I took later shifts to have a place to be warm.” - Rhonda Whitaker, advocate with lived experience.

Having income from a job, Social Security disability benefits, or retirement benefits is no guarantee of being able to afford a place to live. Just over half of all single adults and over 80 percent of adults in families who are experiencing homelessness in DC have income of some kind, and like Rhonda, 22 percent of people experiencing homelessness in DC are employed. Affordable rental housing is housing that a person or family can obtain by paying no more than 30 percent of their income for rent. Anyone paying over 30 percent is considered rent-burdened by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

In DC, a person earning minimum wage would need to work two full-time jobs in order to afford a one-bedroom apartment in our city at Fair Market Rent.

This housing affordability crisis doesn’t just impact the 6,500 people who experience homelessness on any given night in the District— it also puts families who have homes at risk. In DC, there are approximately 39,500 extremely low-income households who pay over 30 percent of their income on housing. Nearly two-thirds of these households spend over half their income on rent, and many pay 80 percent or more of their income on rent. Low-income families who live in unaffordable housing face increased food insecurity and are more likely to delay necessary medical care due to lack of funds. Children growing up in families without affordable housing often struggle in school. These households are only one unexpected expense or job loss away from becoming homeless. And with increasing economic challenges brought on by the COVID-19 crisis, this risk is growing.

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Understanding Median Family Income

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates Median Family Income (MFI) annually for each metropolitan area and non-metropolitan county. HUD uses this information to determine eligibility for assisted housing programs. In the DC Metro Area, a family of 4 with an income of up to $37,800 per year would be considered extremely low-income (0 to 30 percent MFI).

Issues of Equity and Affordable Housing

The median income for all DC households has increased considerably over the last decade when adjusted for inflation, but not all of our neighbors have benefited. According to a report from the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute, Black households were the only major racial or ethnic group in DC to see no progress in household income in the last 10 years when adjusting for inflation. During the same period, housing prices in D.C. increased by 50 percent and rental prices increased by 55 percent in our region. 

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Housing is healthcare and everyone needs housing they can afford.

Affordable housing in DC is supported by a variety of construction and long-term financing tools. For example, the federal government provides Low Income Housing Tax Credits and funding for housing rental vouchers, and DC’s government has a Housing Production Trust Fund and Local Rent Supplement Program. DC also uses policies like inclusionary zoning to ensure that private market developments incorporate affordable units, and requires that up to one-third of new units built on public land sold for development be affordable. Nonprofits, faith-based institutions, and the private sector also help develop affordable housing. DC’s Douglass Community Land Trust uses an innovative model to acquire land to preserve its long-term affordability. Churches across the city provide low-cost land for affordable housing development. Private sector resources are brought to the table by groups like the Washington Housing Conservancy and the Washington Housing Initiative, both of which focus on building and preserving affordable workforce housing (60 to 80 percent of median family income).

But even with all of these resources and partners, creating an adequate supply of affordable housing for our lowest income neighbors, those making up to 60 percent of median family income, is challenging. Building and operating expenses — land, labor, basic materials, utilities, repairs, and maintenance — are largely the same for all apartment buildings no matter what rents tenants can afford to pay, which means that projects that provide affordable housing require more financial support and higher tolerance for investment risk. This is where philanthropic efforts, like the Partnership to End Homelessness, are most needed and best positioned to help solve the problem. Philanthropy is flexible, willing to take calculated risks, and committed to long-term and innovative investments that advance equity in our communities.

We know that in order to end homelessness in DC, we need to have housing that everyone can afford. That’s why we’re focused on increasing the supply of housing that is affordable for those who are most likely to experience homelessness and housing instability in our city.

The Partnership’s Impact Investment is one innovative tool that works to deliver affordable housing for individuals and families making up to 60 percent of median family income (MFI), with a priority on ensuring DC has affordable housing for extremely low-income residents (0-30 MFI). It pools philanthropic investments to support construction and long-term financing for affordable housing projects while delivering a return on investment. In its first year, the Partnership’s investment in Enterprise Community Loan Fund’s impact note has helped fund the development and preservation of 408 affordable units in DC, including 8 new units for extremely low-income formerly homeless individuals living with HIV/AIDS at Homes for Hope’s G Street Campus, and 50 new affordable units including 13 permanent supportive housing units for extremely low-income families on Eastern Avenue in NE DC.

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How You Can Help Create More Affordable Housing in DC

• Participating in the Partnership’s Impact Investment can aid in bringing financial resources to assist in the fight to end homelessness and housing insecurity by increasing the production of deeply affordable and supportive housig.

• Advocacy from the community is critical to ensuring that the city can continue to build affordable housing. This includes advocacy for increased budget for construction and long-term affordable housing programs. It also includes supporting new affordable housing developments in your neighborhood at local ANC and community meetings. Join the Partnership mailing list to be alerted to opportunities for action.

Viewpoint: What business can do to ease homelessness

In a new op-ed for the Washington Business Journal, our President and CEO Bruce McNamer discusses what we learned from a conversation with Mayor Bowser and corporate executives at Salesforce, Zillow, Cisco, and Kaiser Permanente about what it will take to address homelessness and the affordable housing crisis. He shares key takeaways about how the local business community can step up its investments of resources, voice, and leadership to help ensure more of our neighbors have a place to call home.

Let’s End Homelessness Together: The Daniel and Karen Mayers’ Challenge

Daniel and Karen Mayers

There was a time when ending homelessness in the District of Columbia seemed impossible. Today, many people, including Daniel and Karen Mayers, believe that goal is within reach. That is why they have donated $100,000 to begin the Dan and Karen Mayers’ Challenge. The Challenge aims to raise $1 million for the Partnership to End Homelessness. It is with a sense of both urgency and optimism that Dan and Karen challenge others to join them in ensuring that homelessness is rare, brief and non-recurring in DC.

“In the past, homelessness was seen as an intractable problem,” says Dan, a leader in charitable giving in DC for nearly six decades. “Today, we have the leadership, tools, plan, and political will to end homelessness. The only thing missing is critical resources.”

“It’s easy to feel overwhelmed trying to address the many important issues facing our city,” adds Karen. “Here is a concrete problem with a concrete solution.”

In partnership with the District government’s Interagency Council on Homelessness, The Community Foundation has identified an effective way for the local philanthropic community to play a significant role in ending homelessness. The core elements of the Partnership include coordination and engagement of the local business and philanthropic communities, a grant fund to support expenses that transition individuals and families from shelters into homes, and an impact investment that aims to increase the supply of deeply affordable and supportive housing for the District’s most marginalized residents.

A Long History of Philanthropy

Dan and Karen credit The Community Foundation with informing their philanthropy and introducing them to the region’s most effective nonprofits going back many years. Dan is The Community Foundation’s longest serving board member, having previously served as chair of the Board of Directors and of the Governance Board of The Community Foundation’s September 11 Survivors’ Fund. A retired senior partner at the Washington, DC, law firm WilmerHale, he was board chair of the Harvard Law School Visiting Committee, Legal Action Center, National Child Research Center, National Symphony Orchestra, Sidwell Friends School and WETA.

A retired social worker, Karen also has seen the District’s challenges up close while serving as board chair of House of Ruth, vice chair of Iona Senior Services, board member of Home Care Partners and the Higher Achievement Program and, most recently, as a member of The Community Foundation’s Sharing DC Advisory Committee.

More and more, Dan and Karen have focused their philanthropy on groups serving low-income individuals and families. Dan helped to guide The Community Foundation’s Neighbors in Need Fund, established during the recession to strengthen the region’s safety-net providers and services, and the couple were major donors to the fund.

A Lasting Impact

In making the inaugural gift to launch the Dan and Karen Mayers’ Challenge, they hope to inspire others who share their concern for the District’s marginalized residents. They also are motivated by a desire to have a lasting impact in the city they have called home for 60 years.

Dan and Karen recognize that their gift—a substantial percentage of their philanthropic dollars—is just a beginning. But, says Karen, “we have no doubt that the community is up to this challenge.” So far, the Challenge has raised $600,000 from the Mayers’ family, friends and The Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

“This is what community foundations do—they respond to community need,” adds Dan. “Time and again, I’ve witnessed The Community Foundation galvanize the generosity of concerned residents. I’ve seen compassionate people rally around urgent community needs, from natural disasters to 9/11 to the recession.”

Bruce McNamer, The Community Foundation’s President and CEO, echoed Dan and Karen’s optimism: “It’s hard to fathom living in such a wealthy society and not coming together to solve this problem. Together, let’s ensure that every one of our neighbors has a safe and stable place to call home.”

Learn More

To learn more about the Partnership to End Homelessness, visit EndHomelessnessDC.org. If you would like to contribute to the Mayers’ Challenge, please contact Angela Willingham, Associate Vice President of Development or give online.

How Do We End Youth Homelessness in DC?

Guest Post by Ramina Davidson, Director of Housing Stability & Youth Initiatives, DC Alliance of Youth Advocates (DCAYA)

The Greater Washington Community Foundation and our community of donors have funded DCAYA since 2005, when The Community Foundation served as DCAYA’s fiscal sponsor during the organization’s development. Funding has been awarded for general operating support, program support and organizational capacity building, as well as youth civic engagement, youth homelessness/housing and youth workforce-related initiatives.

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Washington, DC has one of the highest rates of homelessness in the nation. The 2018 Youth Count DC estimated that more than 1,300 unaccompanied youth, youth separated from family, and youth heads of household were experiencing homelessness or housing instability (e.g. couch surfing or doubled up) in September 2018. Data from DC’s education agencies also revealed almost 6,000 students enrolled in school are homeless or housing unstable. How do we end youth homelessness in the District of Columbia?

Homelessness or housing instability, generally, is the denial of the right to stable, safe housing. For youth, this denial often manifests through multiple, recurring inequities in the systems that support families and youth (e.g. educational agencies, child and family services agencies) and societal inequities generally (e.g. racism, homophobia, generational poverty). In order to correct systems inequities, power over those systems must be ceded to those individuals the systems have failed to serve.

Over the last decade, DCAYA has steadily been working to shift power to the youth who are experiencing homelessness and housing instability themselves. This led to the creation of DC’s Interagency Council on Homelessness’ Youth Committee, a committee where dozens of organizations, agencies, advocates, and individuals work together to end youth homelessness—including youth who are directly affected by these issues.

In Spring 2017, in partnership with the DC Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH), The Community Foundation hosted a special event to release Solid Foundations DC, the District’s first-ever strategic plan to prevent and end youth homelessness. Solid Foundations DC is the first data-driven youth homelessness plan in the country.

Last year, through persistent advocacy, DC’s youth homelessness system saw several advancements inching us closer to shifting the balance of power. The most notable advancement was the establishment of “Through the Eyes of Youth,” a workgroup of the Youth Committee and DC’s first advisory group of youth with lived experience of homelessness or housing instability. Tasked with guiding the Youth Committee’s implementation of Solid Foundations DC, DC’s first comprehensive plan to end youth homelessness, these youth are paid advisors who share their expertise regarding failures and successes of the systems meant to serve them. These advisory group members guide all aspects of the plan, from bettering the annual homeless youth census to improving resource allocation to developing new and innovative programs.

For example, inspired by feedback from the youth advisory group, the system improved the implementation of its annual homeless youth census, Youth Count DC, to reveal a clearer picture of how young people experience homelessness. For the first time, the census captured where youth have stayed in the past, as well as where they think they may stay in the future. As a result, the total number of youth experiencing homelessness and housing instability rose by hundreds, reflecting more accurate counting that gives policymakers a better understanding of the causes of youth homelessness, and thus better ability to implement successful interventions.

In addition, system improvements included development of three new youth homelessness initiatives: Rapid Rehousing for Youth, Extended Transitional Housing (a new longer-term housing program), and a Drop-In Center that provides 24-hour care. Because DCAYA was able to secure full funding for all new projects in 2018, these new initiatives are currently being implemented and will ensure that hundreds more youth in DC have access to tailored resources than in years prior.

DC’s youth homelessness services system continues to gain momentum in its effort to end youth homelessness. Through collaborative education and advocacy, more partners join in the fight to end youth homelessness every day, and we couldn’t do this work without the support of funders like the Greater Washington Community Foundation. Driving major system change requires stable, multi-year investments. Realizing the change we seek is not a one- or even two-year endeavor. The multi-year funding support and thought partnership of the Greater Washington Community Foundation has been integral to the progress our community has made.

As we continue work to transfer power over systems that serve youth experiencing homelessness and housing instability into the hands of those youth themselves, we know we must not rest on our laurels. A seat at the table is a start, but our work is not done until youth are calling the meeting.

Mayor Bowser and Greater Washington Community Foundation Launch Public-Private Partnership to End Homelessness in DC

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WATCH OUR LAUNCH ANNOUNCEMENT AT A CORPORATE SYMPOSIUM FEATURING MAYOR BOWSER AND SENIOR EXECUTIVES FROM MAJOR CORPORATIONS WORKING TO END HOMELESSNESS IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY

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Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser along with her Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH) and the Greater Washington Community Foundation announced the launch of the Partnership to End Homelessness. This first-of-its-kind initiative in the District aims to galvanize private sector engagement and unite the public and private sectors around a shared strategy to address homelessness and housing insecurity in the nation’s capital.

The Partnership will advance effective and innovative solutions to help our most marginalized and economically disadvantaged neighbors (0-60% Area Median Income) and ensure that homelessness is rare, brief and non-recurring in DC.

On any given night, more than 6,500 individuals, youth and families experience homelessness, including more than 1,500 children. This is due in large part to rising housing costs that outpace local incomes and a shortage of affordable housing, which are preventing many people from participating in the region’s economic growth. In DC, a person earning minimum wage would have to work nearly three full-time jobs to afford an apartment suitable for a family, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

The Partnership aims to increase the availability of philanthropic and private capital to expand the capacity of nonprofit housing developers and supportive service providers to help more of our neighbors transition from the streets or emergency shelters into permanent homes. It will also offer an impact investment option to reduce housing insecurity by financing the development of deeply affordable and supportive housing.

"#Homelessness alters who you are and who you think you want to be. The most important part is the mental health needs." -@Shema22 speaks from her lived experience growing up without a permanent home. #EndHomelessnessDC pic.twitter.com/OfKUGA20xR

— The Community Foundation (@communityfndn) June 6, 2019

“We know that ending homelessness is possible, but that it is going to take all of us from the public and private sectors working together across all eight wards,” said Mayor Bowser. “Through our Homeward DC plan, we are implementing evidence-based solutions and transforming our homeless services system. And while there is more work to do, we are on the right track—family homelessness has decreased by nearly 45 percent and the number of people experiencing chronic homelessness in the District is lower today than it has been in the last 15 years. The time to double-down on and accelerate our progress is now, and that is why we are so grateful to be partnering with the Greater Washington Community Foundation on these critical efforts to end homelessness in Washington, DC.”

“Homelessness and housing insecurity have not always existed the way they do today. We believe that homelessness is solvable, and we also believe that our community is stronger when we bring everyone along,” said Bruce McNamer, President and CEO of the Greater Washington Community Foundation. “Over the last four years, we have witnessed that our community has the political will, leadership and expertise to move the needle on homelessness. The Bowser Administration has established a strong foundation, but private sector engagement will be critical to long-term success. We cannot afford to waste this moment—we must act now and capitalize on the city’s momentum. Together, we can ensure that every one of our neighbors has a safe, stable and affordable place to call home.”

The Partnership will work to:

• Increase the supply of deeply affordable and supportive housing;

• Expand nonprofit capacity to help our neighbors exit homelessness;

• Shift public perceptions of homelessness through education, community mobilization and advocacy efforts; and

• Coordinate cross-sector participation to complement government funding and programming.

The Partnership’s Investment Vehicles

The first phase of the Partnership will utilize two different funding vehicles.

Impact Investing

The Community Foundation will seed $5 million from its combined investment fund to launch an impact investment option available to its donors and others who join the Partnership.

The Partnership strives to raise $10 million in investments to help Enterprise Community Loan Fund build and preserve housing units for hundreds of people across the region. While fund investments earn a fixed return, they will aid in bringing financial resources to bear in the fight to end homelessness and housing insecurity by increasing the production of deeply affordable and supportive housing.

Impact Note investments provide financing to organizations building and preserving deeply affordable and supportive housing units. Housing providers leverage this investment capital to create more homes for our most marginalized neighbors.

Grantmaking Fund

The Partnership’s Grantmaking Fund will:

• Enhance the capacity and expand the network of affordable housing developers and supportive service providers in the community;

• Provide flexible funding to help nonprofits pay for small expenses not covered by federal and local housing programs—such as rental application fees, security deposits and moving expenses—which can create big barriers to stable housing; and

• Support innovative approaches and advocacy efforts focused on strengthening policies that impact housing and homelessness.

The Partnership’s first competitive grant cycle will open in August 2019. The first round of grants will provide support for nonprofit providers in DC to help people obtain and maintain permanent housing and reduce the amount of time spent in the homeless services system.

Funding the Partnership

The Partnership has raised and committed $6.6 million to date, including $1.6 million for the grantmaking fund.

The A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation has made the lead investment of $1 million to help launch the Partnership’s Grantmaking Fund. The Clark Foundation’s mission is to expand opportunities for those who demonstrate the drive and determination to better themselves and their communities.

“The Clark Foundation is committed to partnering with regional leaders like The Community Foundation to provide members of the DC community with the best opportunity to thrive,” said Ryan Palmer, Director, DC Community Initiatives for the Foundation. “Stable housing is a critical factor in a person’s path to reaching their full potential. And while homelessness is a significant challenge in our city, it is through collaborating together in partnerships like these that we can make an impact.”

Additionally, The Community Foundation’s longest-serving Trustee, and former Chair of its September 11 Survivors’ Fund, and his wife have donated $100,000 as the inaugural gift to launch the Dan and Karen Mayers’ Challenge. The Mayers issued this challenge to inspire others to help raise $1 million for the Partnership. So far, the Challenge has raised $600,000 from the Mayers’ family, friends and The Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

More information about the Partnership can be found at EndHomelessnessDC.org. The Partnership’s website offers resources and a variety of ways for individuals and organizations to get involved in our community’s effort to end homelessness in DC.

Businesses and individuals together can end homelessness

In a feature article for the Washington Business Journal’s annual Giving Guide, our CEO Bruce McNamer talks about how it is possible to end homelessness if we can increase the supply of supportive and affordable housing and help individuals and families experiencing homelessness move out of shelters and into a stable home.