State, Federal and Local Partners Announce $2 Million in Federal Funding to Benefit Maryland Homeless Youth

HYATTSVILLE, MD – Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Jake Day was joined Monday by officials from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Sasha Bruce Youthwork and Prince George’s County to announce $2 million in funding to the State of Maryland through HUD’s Youth Homelessness Systems Improvement grant.

“In the Moore-Miller Administration, the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development leads with the belief that shelter must be treated as a human right,” said Secretary Day. “It will take partners at every level of government and beyond to achieve the bold vision we have for giving every Marylander, of every age, the dignity, safety, and comfort of home. Thank you to our partners in the Biden-Harris administration for this significant investment in that vision.”

Youth Homelessness System Improvement (YHSI) grants support communities in either improving an existing response system for youth homelessness or establishing and implementing a new youth homelessness response system. YHSI grants are designed to make and improve connections, coordination and information sharing within and between systems that serve at-risk youth, including education, child welfare and juvenile justice.

Using the $2 million grant, DHCD, partnered with Baltimore City and Prince George’s County, will create:

• A roadmap to establishing a state interagency youth homeless prevention and response plan;
• A statewide network of Youth Action Boards, raising the voice of youth with lived expertise in strengthening our service system for vulnerable youth;
• Statewide standards and training for family and youth support workers in homeless services and other State systems;
• Improvements to the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and Coordinated Entry to standardize youth assessments and coordinated access to housing and other critical services;
• And proposals to pilot and evaluate new housing and service interventions to address youth homelessness through a racial equity lens.

“Everyone deserves a place to call home – especially our youth.  I look forward to the day when there are no homeless people in America,” said HUD Regional Administrator Matthew Heckles.   “This $2 million Youth Homelessness System Improvement grant will enable the State of Maryland to address youth homelessness head on and help build more seamless systems to help our youth find stability, opportunity and success.”

The announcement at Bruce Empowerment Zone (BEZ), which previously received HUD’s Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project funding, also included a preview of the center and a celebratory ribbon-cutting. The Bruce Empowerment Zone is a no-barrier drop-in center with supportive services and mobile street outreach in Prince George’s County that serves youth and young adults (YYA) up to the age of 25 who are homeless or unstably housed. The space is exemplary of the type of programming the funding will support.

HUD announced $51 million in funding for the YHSI grants on June 6, 2024. Grants were awarded to 38 communities across the United States including 26 states, Puerto Rico, and Guam to help communities build a strong, resilient, and equitable homelessness response system that is less siloed and will break down barriers for youth in crisis.

YHSI builds on Maryland’s strong history of multi-agency and multi-sector partnerships to address youth homelessness. DHCD’s proposal included input and commitments from:

• Seven state agencies, including the Maryland Departments of Health, Labor, Juvenile Services, Human Services, Public Safety and Correctional Services, Education, and Service and Civic Innovation;
• Non-profit, foundation, research and government partners from across Baltimore City and Anne Arundel and Prince George’s Counties;
• And three Continuums of Care partners, including the Maryland Balance of State, Baltimore City Youth Action Boards, and Prince George’s County.

“We are thrilled that the State of Maryland has received this historic Youth Homelessness System Improvement Grant from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development,” said Dr. Sanmi Areola, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Health, Human Services and Education, Prince George’s County. “We look forward to our continued partnership with state officials as we use these new funds to improve our youth homelessness response system. “

For more information on the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development’s work to prevent and end homelessness, visit dhcd.maryland.gov.