Youth Committee

The NYC CoC's Youth Committee brings together young people with lived experience of homelessness, youth service providers, coalition members and government agencies to share resources and collaborate with the goal of preventing and ending youth homelessness in NYC.

Youth Committee Co-Chairs 

• Lisa Crook, Chief Program Officer, Covenant House New York
  
• Zaqanah Stephens, Lived Expert, CoC Steering Committee Member
• Tracey Thorne, Director of Strategic Partnerships and Data Analysis, NYC Department of Youth and Community Development

Membership & Meeting Information

To learn more about becoming a committee member, contact the NYC CoC at nyc.coc@dss.nyc.gov. The committee meets on a monthly basis. As of October '24, one of every three meetings will be focused on continued implementation of YHDP/OSH action items.

Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP)/Opportunity Starts with a Home (OSH)

In September of 2021, New York City was awarded a $15 million grant through HUD’s Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP). This award was the result of an extensive application process involving the CoC Youth Action Board, city agencies, coalitions and non-profit service providers. Through a robust and collaborative planning process, the YHDP community accomplished two things:

• selection of non-profit organizations to receive HUD funding for new projects that will serve youth and young adults experiencing homelessness
• development and adoption of a city-wide plan to prevent and end youth homelessness, titled Opportunity Starts with a Home: New York City's Plan to Prevent and End Youth Homelessness

OSH Resources & Research

• Increasing Rental Access for Unhoused Youth and Young Adults by Public Policy Lab

• Homeless Prevention: At-Risk Students in NYC Schools

Youth and Young Adult (YYA) Rapid Re-Housing (RRH) Workgroup: 

The YYA RRH Workgroup creates the opportunity for RRH providers serving youth and young adults to share resources, learn and grow.

Co-Chair Contact Information

• Karim Lewis, Rapid Re-housing Program Director, Rising Ground
• Tanisha Clark, RRH Program Director, Jericho Project
• Ariel Steele, RRH program Director, Covenant House New York

For more information about the workgroup, contact Adam Schreiber (schreiberadam@dss.nyc.gov).