Project Connect4Success, will serve youth, ages 16-25, who are homeless or marginally housed, and have a substance use disorder (SUD) or a SUD and co-occurring mental health disorder. Project participants will gain stability in their lives through obtaining safe and stable housing, outpatient substance use disorder treatment, behavioral health therapy, recovery coaching, vocational counseling, and assistance with pursuing education and employment.
Project Connect4Success will take place in Ingham County, Michigan. Child and Family Charities (CFC), the lead agency, will work collaboratively with the Ingham County Department of Health and Human Services Child Welfare Division (DHHS) and the Lansing Housing Commission (LHC) to provide youth with safe and stable housing through systems improvements. Agency staff will be cross-trained to understand each other’s work. The agency leaders will work together to bring Tenant Protection Vouchers (TPVs) and Family Unification Vouchers into our community under the Foster Youth to Independence Initiative.
Youth who are homeless or marginally housed will be referred to the project through CFC’s Street Outreach Team, the Ingham County DHHS Child Welfare Division and Holy Cross, the Housing Assistance Resource Agency (HARA). CFC serves as the Coordinated Access for homeless youth in Ingham County.
Sixteen youth will be recruited into the project during years 1-4, for a total of 64 youth served over the five-year grant. Youth will receive a minimum of two years of intensive services. Youth will receive screening and assessment for substance use disorder (SUD) and SUD therapy using evidence-based tools. Youth with co-occurring mental health disorders will also receive behavioral health therapy. All youth will be screened for trauma and will receive trauma-informed services. Youth will receive vocational assessment and counseling, case management, recovery coaching, benefits navigation (SSI, Medicaid, TANF, SNAP) and assistance with enrolling in benefits. At program completion, youth will be safely housed in affordable housing and will be able to support themselves through employment and or a combination of employment and mainstream benefits.
By the end of year five of the project:
• 92% of youth will have entered safe and stable independent housing or identified supportive recovery housing.
• 85% of youth will have completed appropriate substance use disorder treatment.
• 80% of youth will be enrolled in a vocational or educational program and/or employed
• 80% of youth will be connected to ongoing recovery coaching services.
• 100% of youth will be connected to mainstream benefits