Tarrant’s Homelessness Game-Changer Cindy Crain Shifts Focus to Dallas, Collin as MDHA’s New CEO

Dallas, Texas (Jan. 27, 2015) – Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance (MDHA), an association of organizations devoted to ending homelessness in Dallas and Collin Counties, announces today that Cindy Crain will join as its new president and CEO effective March 1, 2015.

 

Cindy Crain

Previously, Crain served for seven years as executive director of Tarrant County Homeless Coalition (TCHC) where she earned broad acclaim for radically transforming the organization’s operations and tackling homelessness in Tarrant County. While there, she led efforts to improve the central database used by more than 30 human services organizations to provide real-time knowledge of clients and shelters and more accurately match the needs of homeless persons with the most appropriate housing intervention. Recognizing case managers as being the most critical yet often under-supported person in leading someone in crisis to a life of stability, dignity and self-sufficiency, Crain also developed and implemented an extensive year-round training and recognition program for case managers assuring access to at least 15 continuing education credits for social work licensure.  During Crain's tenure at TCHC, the agency grew from one person to nine and from just over $100,000 to $1.4 million annually to provide extensive services to agencies serving the homeless. 
Larry James, president and CEO of CitySquare, MDHA board member, and Dallas Mayor Rawlings’ appointed leader of the city’s poverty task force, spearheaded search efforts that ultimately led to Crain.

“In our three-month search process, we were encouraged to see such a large pool of qualified candidates interested in leading Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance,” said James. “The organization has made significant progress over the past few years in reducing chronic homelessness. With our goal to end homelessness in Dallas and Collin Counties, it did not take long for us to realize that Cindy Crain is the perfect person for this job.” 

Britton Banowsky, Commissioner of Conference USA and MDHA Board Chair, echoed sentiments about Crain leading homelessness efforts in Dallas and Collin counties. 

"We are excited and so fortunate to have Cindy Crain lead our efforts to address homelessness in our community. She is a nationally recognized expert and proven leader in her field. She is also a wonderful and compassionate person. There is no doubt she will make an amazing positive impact to the organization, and in the lives of countless people throughout North Texas in the years ahead," said Banowsky

Before joining TCHC in 2004, Crain worked in Tarrant County and the City of Fort Worth. She holds a Master of Public Administration degree as a Graduate Fellow from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Texas Christian University. Crain succeeds former MDHA president and CEO Michael Faenza who announced his retirement October 2014 and consulted with the organization until January 1, 2015. 

About MDHA: The Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance (MDHA) is an association of organizations devoted to ending homelessness in Dallas and Collin Counties, by putting people into homes. It facilitates over $16.8 million of annual federal funding, coordinates services, and drives improvement in more than 40 different transitional housing, rapid rehousing, and permanent supportive housing programs. Since 2004, MDHA has overseen a reduction of 65% in chronic homelessness, and an increase of 1200% in permanent supportive housing units. It improved homeless housing program performance by 30% in just the last three years. Finally, it launched and operated The Bridge, a $28 million intake center for those experiencing homelessness, before spinning it off as a separate non-profit. It is committed to ending veteran homelessness and chronic homelessness in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

2015 Point-In-Time (PIT) Homeless Count This Thursday, January 22, 2015

Dallas, Texas – If you happen to be standing in front of Dallas City Hall this coming Thursday, January 22, 2015 at 5pm, you will see an interesting sight. A few hundred people will gather in front of the building, only to then fan out into the night. Their mission? To count and survey those in our community who are experiencing homelessness. The Point-In-Time (PIT) Homeless Count in Dallas is conducted by the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance (MDHA), and is a requirement under U.S. Law.

In fact, during the final ten days of January such counts will take place in every community across our nation. The PIT, which occurs every year, allows communities and the nation as whole to track progress towards ending homelessness, and gather vital data about the needs of those experiencing homelessness. Dallas and the nation as a whole are committed to ending veteran homelessness this year and chronic homelessness next year.

Here in Dallas, MDHA’s grantees and partner agencies count guests and residents in shelters and housing sites, while the above mentioned community volunteers, escorted by Dallas police officers, locate and count those living elsewhere. Similar counts are conducted the same night by the Collin County Homeless Coalition and by the cities of Garland, Irving and Mesquite, who are all part the Dallas area Continuum of Care organization, which is led by MDHA.

MDHA still needs volunteers for this huge operation, which in Dallas is subsidized by the Real Estate Council Foundation. Volunteers must be at least 18 years of age, should wear clothing appropriate for the weather and comfortable shoes, and bring a flashlight, a pen, and a clipboard.

SIGN UP HERE TO TODAY TO VOLUNTEER: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0a4ea8ae2aa02-2015

For questions, contact Shavon Moore, at shavon.moore@mdhadallas.org or 972.638.5627

Rational and Irrational Thought

I am currently researching and writing about Coordinated Access, which we are about to launch here in Dallas. (If you receive our e-newsletter, you already know what this is. If you don’t, why not sign up? Just email me at david.gruber@mdhadallas.org, and I will add you to the list.)  

In this context, specifically the difficulties in obtaining buy-in for programs and ideas backed up by objective research, I found this Scientific American article particularly instructive: Rational and Irrational Thought: The Thinking that IQ Tests Miss - http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/rational-and-irrational-thought-the-thinking-that-iq-tests-miss/?utm_source=digg&utm_medium=email. Check it out, when you have a moment.

By the way, the slightly naughty subtitle (click on the above link, and see it for yourself) actually made me think of the upcoming legislative session. I don’t know why; I just can’t put my finger on it…

A Unique Story That Teaches Us How We Should Treat People Experiencing Homelessness

Check out this somewhat unique story from the UK about a student, who used her common sense, not only in the way she treated a guy who helped her, but also to arrive at what would be of most help to him:

Homeless Man Offers Student All His Money To Get Her A Taxi. Now She's Thanking Him In A Big Way - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/18/student-homeless-man-robbie-dominique-harrison-bentzen_n_6344330.html

Why do I say this story is somewhat unique? I am always on the lookout for uplifting stories about people helping people experiencing homelessness. There are, in fact, many wonderful people out there who want to help. There are, however, often two fundamental challenges that such stories suffer from. First, they treat the person who is experiencing homelessness as one who lacks agency. Second, the help offered does not help the person end his or her homelessness. This should not be surprising, as some people, ample evidence not withstanding, cling to a belief that the "homeless" have something so inherently wrong with them, they need to be "fixed", before they can move back into a permanent home.

In this story, person A has a problem, and person B helps her. Contrary to the often repeated narrative, it is the person experiencing homelessness, who helps the person who is not, and not vice versa. Not only does this man have agency, he sacrifices much more than the typical well-meaning do-gooder, as he gives her all the money he has. We are further told later in the story, that he helps people all the time. Now, Person A, whose problem was solved, decides to return the favor. So, how does this student decide she should help a man experiencing homelessness? Without spending years studying the issue, she arrives at the same conclusion sociologists have arrived at time after time. What does this "homeless" man need? A home! We can reasonably conclude that he has some more challenges in his life, that he probably needs help with; don't all of us? However, getting him into a home - Housing First - will help, not hinder addressing whatever those challenges might be, in addition to ending his homelessness.

This Book Blew Me Away!

I just finished reading one of the best books I have ever read. It just blew me away.

The book, which came out this year, is No Greatness without Goodness – How a Father’s Love Changed a Company and Sparked a Movement. It is the story of former Walgreens Senior Vice President, Randy Lewis, which he tells in first person. Raising an autistic son inspired him to lead Walgreens towards a reality, where 10% of their workforce is made up of persons with disabilities. He did this without sacrificing anything on the business end of the ledger. He is emphatic about the fact that this can work in any company, and in fact has inspired other companies to do the same as Walgreens. He insists that this is all out of a sense of justice, not charity.

Since when you are a hammer everything is a nail, while reading this I obviously reflected on what this might mean for our fight to end homelessness. Homelessness is primarily an issue of poverty, while chronic homelessness, is an area where poverty and disability meet and exacerbate each other. Could such policies, like the one Lewis led at Walgreens, help in this area? I can’t see why not. He gives specific examples of people, who due to their disabilities, were never given a chance to find meaningful employment. Once his policies were enacted, they joined Walgreens, and now serve as valuable employees. An obvious result of this, is that they leave the ranks of the poor.

The larger theme that he talks about is instructive too. We have achievable goals in place to end veteran homelessness and chronic homelessness in the next two years. We are already “breaking the mold” in the area of homelessness, in general, with the funding of Rapid Rehousing programs for those experiencing or at risk of homelessness. However, these achievements and initiatives will not solve the problem of those who are “doubled-up” with friends or family, who are probably number around 7.5 million people in our country. They most certainly will not solve the challenges people face every day living in substandard housing or housing they cannot afford. The only solution to these problems, and at the end of the day, the only thing that will help cure poverty is if our country decides to act as it should, and truly invest in ending poverty out of a sense of obligation, justice and love.

Alliance Homeless Forum Meeting

Friday morning I attended the Alliance Homeless Forum at the Central Branch of the Dallas Public Library. This was my first time at this extremely interesting and important meeting, and I am definitely making this a regular on my calendar. It is open to all.

The first agency spotlight was delivered by folks from AIDS Arms. They explained how their agency helps helps individuals who are HIV positive, and patients with AIDS. They specifically highlighted the special program they run to help such individuals, who are experiencing homelessness. It was fascinating to hear how they help clients where they "are", and empower individuals to direct their own care, according to their own needs.

They talked about how care is free under federal law, and compared to the past, the medication regimens are simpler, side effects are down, and testing is quicker. As with so many issues in the health and social service arena, getting people services is not only the humane thing to do; it contributes to public health, and saves the community money.

Ignorance and various misconceptions regarding AIDS (and sexuality in general) create tremendous barriers to the important work these folks do. This ignorance seems to be more prevalent than one would imagine, and seems to begin in our schools, continue in our houses of worship, and even affect some service providers.

The second agency spotlight was delivered by Ron Coward, of the Crisis Intervention team, who are social workers, who are attached to the Dallas Police Department. They mainly do outreach with persons who are experiencing homelessness and are unsheltered. They spoke about the importance of helping people who are unsheltered, specifically during cold and wet weather, and how they help folks navigate the system.

Traswell Livingston, III, the outgoing Chair of the Dallas area Continuum of Care, closed out the meeting thanking and honoring those who have been instrumental in running the forum and advocating for those experiencing homelessness.

20 Things a Person Experiencing Homelessness Might Do With a Cellphone

There is a rather disturbing letter to the editor on the Dallas Morning News site. You can find it here: http://letterstotheeditorblog.dallasnews.com/2014/12/homeless-people-with-cellphones.html/, and here is the letter in whole:

Homeless people with cellphones?

Re: “Unlikely visitor slithers into The Stewpot,” Wednesday news story.

What a nice story in the Metro section Wednesday about the Stewpot Homeless Resource Center sponsoring a drive for coats or sleeping bags, and feeding the homeless in a selfless way.

However, I also looked carefully at the accompanying picture, and noticed that the homeless man was taking a close-up picture of the python with his cellphone. Hmm. Homeless people with cellphones. Am I missing something here?

Peter Archbold, Richardson

I was happy to see that online, the commenters almost universally took this individual to task. I am sure that if I asked any one of our grantees what the letter writer is missing, they could come up with things I can’t think of. Another tack might be, and I am just spit-balling here, to attend the Alliance Homeless Forum this Friday at 10.30am at the Dallas Public Library’s Central Branch, and ask one of the attendees, what they could do or do with a cell phone.

However, let’s just say that one would exercise simple empathy, which Webster defines as, “the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicit manner; also: the capacity for this”. Would that not be enough, to come up with an answer to the above rhetorical question?!

Perhaps the problem starts with defining these people as, “the homeless.” Perhaps, if one recognized that these are people, who among all of their characteristics and life experiences, are currently experiencing homelessness, one could empathize?! Seriously, have we not learned, in the American South of all places, that treating people as the “other” dehumanizes us too?!

So, just for the sake of this exercise, let’s see how many reasons, in no particular order, I can come up with, without consulting the experts, speaking to an actual person experiencing homelessness, or doing any research. (I will stop when I reach 20, OK?)

I might do any or all of these, with a cell phone, were I experiencing homelessness:

     1)     Talk to loved ones, who care about me, and about whom I care;

2)     Talk to potential employers about jobs;

3)     Talk to the Texas Workforce Commission, so I can get unemployment benefits;

4)     Document an accident or a crime;

5)     Call 911 to report an accident or a crime;

6)     Talk to CitySquare, who can help me find housing;

7)     Talk to The Bridge, so I can find if I can stay there tonight;

8)     Call the Salvation Army to find out where I can get a meal;

9)     Make an appointment to see a doctor at one of the Parkland HOMES mobile clinics;

10) Find out results of medical tests;

11) Talk to the VA about benefits I earned, while protecting the rights of people to write letters to newspapers about why I shouldn’t be able to have a cell phone;

12) Find out where I might get a used suit for a job interview;

13) Find out where I can store my belongings;

14) Call Texas Health and Human Services to arrange for medical insurance for my children;

15) Find out from AIDS Services, if they can help me get a refill for my anti-viral drugs;

16) Call the Resource Center to find out if there is an LGBT youth support group I can join, since, at just 16 years old, my parents threw me out of the house, after I came out last week;

17) Call Legal Aid of Northwest Texas, to find out how I can get a restraining order against my husband, who is continuing to stalk me;

18) Call the Vogel Alcove to tell them I am running five minutes late, since my boss at my minimum wage job changed the schedule on me at the last minute, and threatened to fire me, if I left at the time he had originally told me I could;

19) Call Pat at the Stewpot to thank her and tell her how much I enjoy selling the Streetzine;

20) Text a small donation to the Dallas Public Library, because I love the fact that they treat me with dignity, and host the Alliance Homeless Forum every month, where I can share concerns with people who value my point of view.

 
That, Mr. Archbold, is what you are missing.