Sometimes for youth, housing and education can feel like a Catch 22: without an education, you can’t get a good job to pay for housing. But without housing, it can be hard to have the stability to succeed in college. JBAY Youth Advocate Cody Van Felden understands this dilemma all too well.
Cody became homeless at the age of 18, after being kicked out of the home of her former foster parents. While homeless, she frequently moved from one place to another across multiple counties, making it difficult to travel to school and mental health providers. She also fell into dangerous situations involving physical and emotional abuse. Once she finally gained stable housing, she earned her B.A. in Psychology from Sacramento State and graduated with honors.
With her degree, Cody now has the means to achieve greater financial security, building a career and a safe home for herself. “Having money in an account that supports you, and that someone else cannot take advantage of, is life-changing.”
JBAY Higher Education Program Manager Linda Ramos is making sure that youth experiencing homelessness don’t lose the opportunity to graduate from high school and continue onto post-secondary education. For the last year, she has worked to ensure that a new source of federal funding in Los Angeles County for homeless youth also considers their post-secondary education needs.
This funding source is the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP), which awards funding to collaborative community-based projects across the U.S. that aim to reduce the number of youth experiencing homelessness. Los Angeles was awarded $15 million in 2021.
Thanks to Linda’s efforts, the YHDP in Los Angeles now requires all applicants to have an agreement with an educational institution. This will ensure that youth not only receive housing assistance, but also the resources and support to achieve their academic goals.
“The new updates made to the YHDP are crucial”, says Linda. “Because of this, youth will be better equipped with the tools they need to overcome barriers in both housing and education at the same time.”
Linda was recognized by the National Center for Homeless Education for her work on YHDP, and JBAY will receive an honorarium on behalf of all her great work.
According to JBAY Executive Director Amy Lemley, this approach is both strategic and necessary. “Regardless of how good a housing program is, it will likely eventually end. When it does, we need to make sure that young people have the means to maintain housing and live with stability and security. Linda’s work to improve access to postsecondary education will ensure that this happens.”