About Keep Austin Housed

In 2003, Front Steps, the parent agency of Keep Austin Housed, was awarded an AmeriCorps *State federal grant to create a project that addressed the issues related to an estimated 4,000 homeless single adults, families, and youth living on the streets in Austin/Travis County. It was found that case management programs working with homeless populations were often at capacity and staff was often stretched thin, impacting the overall effectiveness of service delivery.

The design of the Keep Austin Housed AmeriCorps project is to partner with social service agencies and augment their case management programs by providing these agencies with AmeriCorps members to enhance their level of service delivery. Our project’s AmeriCorps members are to engage clients in a process that empowers them to obtain and/or maintain permanent affordable housing and improve personal stability through the development of effective life skills. In addition, AmeriCorps members educate the community-at-large on issues related to homelessness and access the support of community volunteers, in-kind donations and financial contributions.

Our original grant award allowed Front Steps to place ten AmeriCorps members at five partner agencies during our first project year (2003-2004). In our second year (2004-2005), we were awarded additional dollars to increase the number of AmeriCorps members to twenty-five, consequently increasing the number of partner agencies to seven. In the fall of 2005, we applied for an augmentation grant to address disaster and relief efforts stemming from hurricanes Katrina and Rita. We were awarded the grant and in January 2006 ten additional AmeriCorps member were added to our project working specifically with evacuees from the hurricanes and increasing our network of partner agencies to nine. We are currently in our seventh year (2009-2010) with 24 full-time AmeriCorps members and we are looking forward to our impact this year!

About Texas AmeriCorps

AmeriCorps: This year AmeriCorps will provide more than 3,100 individuals the opportunity to
provide intensive, results-driven service to meet education, environmental, public safety and other pressing needs in communities across Texas. Roughly three-quarters of all AmeriCorps grant funding goes to the Governor-appointed OneStar Foundation, which in turn awards grants to nonprofit groups to respond to local needs. Most of the remainder of the grant funding is distributed by the Corporation directly to multi-state and national organizations through a competitive grants process. In exchange for their service, AmeriCorps members earn an education award of up to $4,725 that can be used to pay for college or to pay back qualified student loans. Since 1994, more than 24,000 Texas residents have qualified for Segal AmeriCorps Education Awards totaling more than $73,000,000.

About Front Steps 

Since 1997, Front Steps (formerly Capital Area Homeless Alliance) has worked to created practical solutions for helping people find their way home. Through shelter and permanent-housing programs, skills development, employment resources and more, Front Steps supports low-income workers, disabled and homeless individuals and their families to find lasting and affordable housing. Front Steps is based on the belief that all people deserve the dignity of a safe place to call home and seeks to end homelessness.www.frontsteps.org

Front Steps is currently working with the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO) www.austinecho.org  to develop Austin’s Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. The Ten Year plan is a tangible plan that addresses individuals that have been homeless for a year or more (or have had at least four episodes of homelessness in the past three years) and most have a disabling condition (substance abuse, serious mental illness, or developmental or physical disability). While the chronically homeless represent only 10-15% of the homeless population, they utilize over 50% of the homeless resources. This population is proven successful when give appropriate support.