Point In Time Count:

Focus, Feedback and Planning

Cathy ten Broeke, Director, MN Office to Prevent and End HomelessnessAmy Stetzel, Project Manager, MN Office to Prevent and End Homelessness

Dina Chou, MN Department of Human Services, Office of Economic Opportunity

Objectives• Why do we do the PIT Count?• Priority and Focus for January 2015 Count• Structure for the Counts (sheltered and

unsheltered)• Brainstorm additional questions (the

question bank!)• Map out the Countdown to the PIT

Calendar

Why do the PIT Count?• Critical source of data on the number and characteristics of

people who are homeless in the U.S. o Provided to Congress as part of the Annual Homeless Assessment Reporto Main Source of data for Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness

• HUD requires Continuums of Care (CoCs) to count the number of people experiencing homelessness in the geographic area that they serve through the Point-in-Time count (PIT).

• Helps to understand the scope of homelessness and identify trends Target resources, Improve Services and Identify Gaps

• Data helps tell our story and make the case for more resources Helps raise community awareness and political awareness

• MN’s Heading Home Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness uses PIT data as it’s main data tool to measure meeting the goals laid out in the Heading Home Plan.

Priority and Focus for January 2015 Count

Priority: Improving our current PIT count process across the State by:• Supporting our CoC’s• Improving data consistency across the state

Focus on collecting information on Veterans and those who have been in foster care by:• Asking the right questions• Consistently implementing those questions across

the State• Empower people with the right questions and

right implementation so we aren’t estimating our numbers, but using accurate counts.

2015 Focus Questions

Veterans (** the below questions are HUD questions currently in the unsheltered and sheltered

PIT survey. We are working with Wilder and MDVA to make sure the right Veteran questions are in HMIS and that we are asking consistent questions across both the

sheltered and unsheltered PIT surveys**)

1) Have you served in the United States Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard)?

2) (If “no” to above) Were you ever called into active duty as a member of the National Guard or as a Reservist?

3) Have you ever received health care or benefits from a Veterans Administration medical center?

Foster Care1) Have you ever been in foster care?

Sheltered SurveyOnly Emergency Shelters, Motel Voucher Programs

and Transitional Housing Programs

• For all providers in HMIS, we are working with Wilder to see if they will be able to pull this data for each CoCo Wilder will conduct data quality checks in partnership with CoC

coordinators to make sure everything looks right and correct any discrepancies.

o CoC coordinators will be provided with the final data to submit to HUD

• For all providers NOT in HMIS, you will:1. complete the OEO Sheltered Survey online to report aggregate program

level data, AND2. Ask each individual the Veteran Questions and Foster Care Question

a) What’s the best process for this?

Unsheltered Survey• The SAME survey will be administered across the

State made up of this general survey format:o HUD Required Questionso 2015 Focus questionso Additional questions you may choose to ask from the Question Bank (we will

create this bank together!)

• Each CoC will choose what questions they would like to ask from the question bank and will finalize their specific CoC unsheltered survey by November

• Working to establish a common data gathering and analysis process.o What works now?o What would be helpful to you?

Question Bank BRAINSTORM

Doubled-Up: In the last 30 days and nights, including this one, how many nights have you spent doubled up (staying in someone else’s house, apartment or room due to economic reasons or because there was not a safe place or affordable place for you to rent or buy on your own)?

Youth/History: How old were you the very first time you were homeless, either with or without your parents?

Involvement in Juvenile System: Were you ever held for more than a week in a juvenile detention center or other juvenile facility or camp?

Education: What is the highest grade in school you have completed?

Employment: Are you currently employed? (this includes temp work and self-employment)

Income: In the last 12 months have you received family welfare benefits in MN or another state?

Domestic Violence: Including today, have you ever lived in a battered women’s shelter?

Countdown to the PIT Calendar

• November:o Finalizing lists of programs in HMIS and not in HMISo Finalizing general individual survey, question bank questions, and each CoC’s

specific survey

• December:o General Volunteer Training Presentation will be sent to CoC coordinatorso Webinar will go out to providers who are not in HMIS regarding how to complete

the OEO sheltered survey.

• January:o PIT Count date = Thursday January 22, 2014o Providers using HMIS should make sure HMIS data is updated through January

22nd

• February: o Wilder will start pulling data from HMIS for sheltered surveyo Providers will work with Wilder to make sure HMIS data is accurateo OEO will work with providers to make sure non-HMIS sheltered data is accurate

• March: o Wilder, OEO and CoCs will work on data accuracy and quality

• April: o Data will be finalized and reported to HUD

Feedback• What is your biggest need when it comes to the

PIT Count?

• What do you think would most improve the PIT count?

• How do you feel about what’s been proposed here? o Priority?, Focus?, Potential role of Wilder?

• Other questions?

Resources for YOU to have right now!

• HUD Point-in–Time methodology guide!https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/PIT-Count-Methodology-Guide.pdf

• National Alliance to End Homelessness Webinar this Friday on the 2015 PIT count and homeless youth

http://www.endhomelessness.org/news/calendar/upcoming-webinar-prepare-for-the-2015-point-in-time-count-enumerating-unshe

• Webinar: Preparing for your 2014 housing inventory and PIT countshttps://www.hudexchange.info/training-events/courses/preparing-for-your-2014-housing-inventory-and-point-in-time-counts-webinar1/

• HUD Exchange Website: PIT survey toolshttps://www.hudexchange.info/resource/3322/point-in-time-survey-tools/

Contact Information• Cathy ten Broeke, Director, MN Office to Prevent

and End Homelessnes cathy.tenbroeke@state.mn.us

• Amy Stetzel, Project Manager, MN Office to Prevent and End Homelessness amy.stetzel@state.mn.us

• Dina Chou, MN Department of Human Services, Office of Economic Opportunity dina.chou@state.mn.us