Homelessness Counts

A movement to end homelessness is underway. Thousands of stakeholders -- policymakers, advocates, researchers, practitioners, former and current homeless people, community leaders, and concerned citizens -- from across the country are involved in efforts to end homelessness at the local and national level. Today, hundreds of communities are re-tooling their homeless assistance systems and have committed to ending homelessness through local plans. At the federal level, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) homelessness assistance programs are targeting resources to permanent housing, and the Congress and the Bush Administration have committed to ending chronic homelessness by developing 150,000 units of permanent supportive housing for people who have been homeless for long periods. The private sector, through major philanthropic organizations, is engaging and funding efforts that focus on permanent solutions for homeless people. And new research and imaginative policies at the state and local level are paving the way. Taken together, these efforts represent a nationwide effort to end homelessness. How will we know if these efforts are successful? This report lays the groundwork for measuring efforts to end homelessness by establishing a baseline number of homeless people from which to monitor trends in homelessness. We use local point-in-time counts of homeless people to create an estimate of the number of homeless people nationwide. As with all data, the counts included in this report are not perfect and have numerous limitations, but they are the best data available at this time. In January 2005, an estimated 744,313 people experienced homelessness. 56 percent of homeless people counted were living in shelters and transitional housing and, shockingly, 44 percent were unsheltered. 59 percent of homeless people counted were single adults and 41 percent were persons living in families. In total, 98,452 homeless families were counted. 23 percent of homeless people were reported as chronically homeless, which, according to HUD's definition, means that they are homeless for long periods or repeatedly and have a disability. A number of states had high rates of homelessness, including Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington State. In addition, Washington, DC had a high rate of homeless people. These statistics show that far too many people are homeless. There is, however, reason for optimism. During the past five years, community approaches to homelessness have changed and thousands of people are working toward the shared goal of ending homelessness. Measuring their success or failure will depend on collecting and analyzing outcome data, monitoring changes in homelessness populations, and understanding which interventions lead to different outcomes. Yet, up until now, we had no recent data on how many people are homeless in the United States. The data in this report represent the first effort to count homeless people nationwide in 10 years. We hope to make this report an annual report, tracking progress on the efforts to end homelessness nationwide. It is our belief that what gets measured, gets done

Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans

Far too many veterans are homeless in America. Homeless veterans can be found in every state across the country and live in rural, suburban, and urban communities. Many have lived on the streets for years, while others live on the edge of homelessness, struggling to pay their rent. We analyzed data from the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Census Bureau to examine homelessness and severe housing cost burden among veterans. This report includes the following findings: In 2006, approximately 195,827 veterans were homeless on a given night -- an increase of 0.8 percent from 194,254 in 2005. More veterans experience homeless over the course of the year. We estimate that 336,627 were homeless in 2006. Veterans make up a disproportionate share of homeless people. They represent roughly 26 percent of homeless people, but only 11 percent of the civilian population 18 years and older. This is true despite the fact that veterans are better educated, more likely to be employed, and have a lower poverty rate than the general population. A number of states, including Louisiana and California, had high rates of homeless veterans. In addition, the District of Columbia had a high rate of homelessness among veterans with approximately 7.5 percent of veterans experiencing homelessness. We estimate that in 2005 approximately 44,000 to 64,000 veterans were chronically homeless (i.e., homeless for long periods or repeatedly and with a disability). Lack of affordable housing is the primary driver of homelessness. The 23.4 million U.S. veterans generally do not have trouble affording housing costs; veterans have high rates of home ownership and appear generally well housed. However, there is a subset of veterans who have severe housing cost burden. We estimate that nearly half a million (467,877) veterans were severely rent burdened and were paying more than 50 percent of their income for rent. More than half (55 percent) of veterans with severe housing cost burden fell below the poverty level and 43 percent were receiving foods stamps. Rhode Island, California, Nevada, and Hawaii were the states with the highest percentage of veterans with severe housing cost burden. The District of Columbia had the highest rate, with 6.4 percent of veterans paying more than 50 percent of their income toward rent. Female veterans, those with a disability, and unmarried or separated veterans were more likely to experience severe housing cost burden. There are also differences by period of service, with those serving during the Korean War and WWII more likely to have severe housing cost burden. We estimate that approximately 89,553 to 467,877 veterans were at risk of homelessness. At risk is defined as being below the poverty level and paying more than 50 percent of household income on rent. It also includes households with a member who has a disability, a person living alone, and those who are not in the labor force. These findings highlight the need to expand homeless prevention and affordable housing programs targeted at veterans. Further the findings demonstrate that ending homelessness among veterans is a vital mission that requires the immediate attention of policymakers

Efficiency of Root Crop Production in the Fiji Islands

Improvements in the efficiency of agricultural production represent an important source of growth for the Fiji Islands economy. An analysis of the nature and extent of efficiency differences between root crop farmers suggests that there are modest, but economically significant gains that can be made from improving farm level efficiency. On average, around 25% of root crop production is lost due to technical inefficiency. Although our results did not show that larger producers were more efficient than smaller semi-subsistence producers we did find that focus on a smaller range of crops and concentration on farming in terms of work time both tended to improve the efficiency of farmers that produced dalo. The implications of these results for the agricultural R&D system are discussed. The key policy finding is that given the modest gains in production that are feasible from improving technical efficiency, a major growth in root crop production and consumption is likely to be more dependent on the introduction of new technology than the better dissemination of the existing technology.

The comparative effects of three toxic substances on bluegill behavior

A behavioral bioassay was used to compare the separate toxic effects of sublethal concentrations of methyl parathion, copper sulfate and chlordane on bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus. Ten behaviors were monitored in bluegill hierarchies before and after toxicant introductions. These behaviors encompassed respiratory disruptions, changes in comfort movements and aggression. Hyperactivity and increased frequencies of s-jerks and fin flicks were significant (P (LESSTHEQ) 0.05) in fish exposed to the lowest methyl parathion concentration (0.003 mg/L) used. Respiratory disruptions were significantly (P (LESSTHEQ) 0.01) elevated in bluegill exposed to as low as 0.034 mg/L copper sulfate while chlordane (0.00015 mg/L) produced increased aggression. The most dominant and most subordinate fish were more affected in every concentration of each of the three chemicals used than intermediately ranked hierarchy members. This differential response suggests that there is a combined effect due to social stress and toxicant stress. Social hierarchies develop as mechanisms to efficiently ration limited resources among individuals of a population. Low levels of methyl parathion, copper sulfate and chlordane could affect hierarchy function which might ultimately disrupt population dynamics under natural conditions

Alien Registration- Henry, Mary A. (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/23927/thumbnail.jp

Understanding the College Choice Process of Catholic Homeschooled Students

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how Catholic homeschooled students navigate the college choice process. With the growth of homeschooling in the United States nearly doubling in the past eight years (Cogan, 2010), this study explored a segment of this growing population to give researchers and practitioners a deeper understanding of how they make their college choice. This study employed a basic, interpretive qualitative methodology. Data were obtained through interviews with 25 Catholic homeschooled students who applied to Benedictine College, a small Catholic liberal arts college in the Midwest. The study was guided by the literature on homeschooling, college choice theory, specifically Hossler and Gallagher's (1987) college choice model, and primary influences on college choice, including cultural and social capital. Several themes emerged through data analysis. First, participants aspired to attend college and had parents who expected them to go to college. Second, parents played an important role in college choice for all participants, but their knowledge of college planning and involvement in the college choice process varied. Participants were influenced by family, friends, faith, academics, finances, campus climate or "fit", and location/size of specific institutions. The students' college choice process was influenced also by the cultural and social contexts in which they interacted, including family values, friends, and the homeschooling environment. Third, homeschooled students in this study relied on the Internet, printed materials, word-of-mouth, and other resources to gather information to conduct their college search. Last, the primary deciding influences affecting the students' final choice of college included cost of attendance, academic program, campus climate, location, and divine intervention. Homeschooled students in this study navigated the college choice process rather independently. The college choice patterns and timing of their decisions were more similar to, than different from, previous studies on college choice of traditionally-schooled students. However, participants often lacked the information, guidance, and support to navigate easily through the process, emphasizing the importance and need for effective communication with colleges and universities

Alien Registration- Henry, Mary A. (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/23927/thumbnail.jp

Alien Registration- Henry, Mary A. (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/23927/thumbnail.jp

Rethinking UK policy towards conflict: evidence from comparative research on the drivers of conflict

Mary Kaldor and Henry Radice argue that the UK can only reduce global conflict unilaterally by working with partners, including through the multilateral system. This requires a decade-long, joined-up strategic approach focused on reducing conflict by applying the best diplomatic, development, and defence resources available. Adopting such an approach would enable policymakers to continuously assess how UK and partner interventions interact with conflict at regional, national, and local levels and to adapt them accordingly