Metro Denver Receives $2.58 Million from Federal Government to End Youth Homelessness

DENVER, COLORADO – On September 20, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $2,580,526 to the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative (MDHI) to prevent and end youth homelessness. The funding was awarded through HUD’s Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP). The grant allows key stakeholders in Denver’s homelessness services community, including those with lived experience, to create and implement a coordinated community plan to end homelessness for youth aged 24 and under.

Metro Denver was one of 16 communities selected by HUD to receive a YHDP grant this year, totaling $60 million in funding. These funds will be sub-granted to support a range of housing programs for youth, such as rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing, and transitional housing. “YHDP was developed using vital input from the very communities it serves,” said Rocky Mountain Regional Administrator Dominique Jackson. “With a strong focus on targeted outreach and supportive services, the funding available through this program will enable organizations like the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative to reach more youth and change the trajectory of their lives.”

Layla Said, Communications Specialist at MDHI, led this year’s grant writing, Homeless Youth Needs Assessment, and stakeholder engagement. She shared, “This is a pivotal moment for our community, one that gives us a real opportunity to address a critically unmet need for housing resources and end youth homelessness as a region in collaboration with those we serve.”

Metro Denver’s Homeless Management Information System showed 1,787 youth accessing services related to homelessness in metro Denver between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022. During the same period, 632 unaccompanied youth were served by Runaway and Homeless Youth Projects. School districts also identified and reported 8,240 students experiencing homelessness during the 2020-2021 school year, and the annual Point in Time count identified 469 youth experiencing literal homelessness on the night of January 30, 2023. "Youth homelessness is a growing challenge in our community,” said Dr. Jamie Rife, Executive Director of MDHI. “This funding will greatly strengthen the region’s ability to meet the needs of young people navigating this crisis,” she added.  

Dominique Jackson, Rocky Mountain Regional Administrator of HUD, will be presenting the region with a check on September 27th at 10:15 am at Urban Peak's facility located at 1630 S. Acoma St. in Denver. The public and press are invited to attend.

The Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) is a federal initiative designed to reduce the number of youth experiencing homelessness. Its goal is to support selected communities, including rural, suburban, and urban areas across the United States, in the development and implementation of a coordinated community approach to preventing and ending youth homelessness.

MDHI is the Metro Denver Continuum of Care, the regional system that coordinates services and housing for people experiencing homelessness. This includes prevention/diversion, street outreach, emergency shelter, transitional housing, rapid rehousing, and permanent supportive housing. MDHI works closely with each county in its continuum (Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson) to build a homeless crisis response system that gets people back into housing as quickly as possible.

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For more information, please email info@mdhi.org.