It’s been nearly two years since the Oregon Homeless and Runaway Youth Work Group released its report, “From Out of the Shadows,” on the state of Oregon’s at-risk youth.
This year, representatives from numerous advocacy groups from around the state are convening to reassess the situation, finding that the struggles of homeless youths continue to exist, as do the gaps in service and limited funding that compound the problem.
On Sept. 18, representatives from organizations and government agencies from Portland, Multnomah and surrounding counties met at the Northeast Police Precinct for a regional focus group to examine what works and what doesn’t in providing services to at-risk youths.
For Portland providers, including Outside In, New Avenues for Youth, Janus Youth and Dinner and a Movie, outreach was the success story. Organizations that make one-on-one contact with people say they were better able to develop relationships and meet the needs of at-risk youths.
The list of barriers, however, was much longer. Access to medication and health and dental care, services for people 21 and older, getting and retaining identification and early job training were among the issues that advocates and youth services workers found lacking to properly serve this population. There were also problems with youths being discharged from the foster care or other government service systems because they “age-out,” leaving many to hit the streets before connecting with other organizations that can help them.
Between 23,000 and 25,000 Oregon youths are runaway or homeless in one year’s time, according to a 2002 survey. However, no single database exists to provide a comprehensive estimate on the population. Nationally, estimates range from 1.3 million to 2.8 million youths live on the streets each year. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, homeless youths are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population.
Information gathered from the focus session in Portland will be added to the findings from similar sessions in Eugene, Pendleton, Bend, Medford and Tillamook. Ultimately, the information will be used to address requirements in 2005’s HB 2202, one of the outcomes of the Oregon Homeless and Runaway Youth Work Group. Research by the work group published in “From Out of the Shadows” determined that there was no branch of government responsible for at-risk youths. HB2202 places that responsibility squarely on the Commission on Children and Families as the agency responsible for addressing the system, along with $4.6 million in proposed funding specifically for runaway and homeless youths.
The outcomes of the focus session will help develop policy for local homeless youth continuums, including prevention policies, data collection methods and resources for funding. A final report on the focus groups findings will be released in October.