CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Over 4,000 CMS students will be housing insecure this school year, that's thousands of students living with other family members, in a hotel, or in a car.
To tackle the problem, a local organization called Charlotte Family Housing is looking to empower working families experiencing homelessness.
“Homelessness can happen to anybody and everybody,” Chief Housing Officer at Charlotte Family Housing, Elizabeth Kurtz said.
Charlotte Family Housing is a shelter-to-housing program, the organization mainly works with homeless CMS families.
“Families can do anything if they have a stable base to work from, but if they don’t, they’re just not going to go anywhere," Kurtz said.
Over the last ten years, the organization has helped 1,337 families and 2,940 children find a home.
According to CMS, 4,700 students are expected to be housing insecure this school year.
“That statistic didn’t surprise me,” Kurtz said.
To help families get out of homelessness they go through a several step program. First, they go into the shelter phase. While they are in the shelter, they manage a household budget, establish health routines, and become more involved in their children's education.
Then they transition into the housing phase. Housing resource coordinators connect families with housing through housing partnerships throughout Mecklenburg County, while providing rental support.
“It has been successful, 98% of the families that we track after they leave the program have maintained stable housing,” Kurtz said.
For programs like Charlotte Family Housing, they can only do so much with the resources they have. If you would like to make a donation you can visit their website.
Contact Lexi Wilson at lwilson@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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