We look forward to seeing you virtually at next week’s Bringing It Home: Ending Homelessness in NC conference! You should receive an email from “McKimmon_Center Services” at mckimmonrequests@ncsu.edu with instructions for how to join the conference website. If you do not receive an email today, please check your spam folder. If you cannot find your email, please reach out to mckimmonrequests@ncsu.edu to request your login information.
We encourage everyone to log in and familiarize yourself with the site prior to the start of the conference. There you can view the full conference agenda and speakers as well as customize your own conference schedule and upload your profile.
Registration for Bringing It Home 2022 is closed. For questions, contact Haley Solomon at hsolomon@nchousing.org.
Join us for the 2022 Bringing it Home: Ending Homelessness in NC virtual conference on May 10th and 11th! Over two days, we will share best practices, discover successful strategies, and hear from state and local leaders. In addition to a keynote presentation, attendees will participate in their choice of live workshops that include Q&A sessions with each presenter. Register today, and check this page for updates on workshops and speakers.
Full Schedule
Speaker Bios
Day 1
Opening and Keynote | 9am-10am
Secretary Kody Kinsley, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Roosevelt Grant, Greensboro Field Office Director, US Department of Housing and Urban Development
Joe Breen, Section Chief, Division of Aging and Adult Services, Planning, ESG and Service Support Section, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Samuel Gunter, Executive Director, North Carolina Housing Coalition
Ryan Fehrman, Executive Director, North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness
Workshop Breakout 1 | 10:15am-11:15am
Young Children Experiencing Homelessness Need Support!
Beth Bordeaux, Co-owner/Senior Advisor, Partners for Impact
Tasha Melvin, Director of Partnerships and Programs, Families Moving Forward
Em Ross-Hansen, Shelter Case Manager, Helpmate
Cass Wolfe, Chief Strategy Officer, Child Care Services Association
Consider the impact of homelessness on young children and how shelters can incorporate changes to meet the needs of children under age 6 and their families. Through discussion of a pilot program, we will deepen our understanding of the trauma of homelessness for young children and how two shelters have used the Early Childhood Self-Assessment Tool for Shelters to promote resilience and build community connections. We will share some of our early learnings from the four participating family shelters and discuss how more shelters may be able to participate.
NOT the Usual Suspects: Engaging Property Owners in Affordable Housing Solutions
Karen Britton, Landlord Engagement Specialist, United Way of Forsyth County
Tara Peele, President and CEO, Socialserve
Debra Susie, Project Specialist, North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness
Strong partnerships with private landlords and property managers—especially in tight rental markets and areas with low vacancy rates—are critical for quick housing placements.
—U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness
The Housing Matters Team at United Way of Forsyth County is coming up with creative solutions and thinking outside of the box to understand what incentivizes and drives both landlords and property managers. It then uses that information to create programming that helps maximize affordable housing options and retention.
The North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness with funding from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina coordinates the Housing Connections Initiative, comprising Socialserve (Charlotte), Homeward Bound (Asheville), Housing for New Hope (Durham), and Trillium Health Resources (several eastern NC rural counties). The collaborative provides creative financial incentives for landlords to provide housing for those experiencing homelessness.
HUD Monitoring
Michael Johnson, Sr. Community Planning & Development Representative, US Department of Housing and Urban Development Greensboro Field Office
Mr. Michael Johnson from the HUD Greensboro Field Office will provide an overview of HUD monitoring standards.
Workshop Breakout 2 | 11:30am-12:30pm
Understanding Youth Homelessness: Addressing Needs and Supporting Homeless Youths in North Carolina
Augustine Frazer, Interim Director, Pitt County Department of Social Services
Homelessness is a global phenomenon that transcends race, gender, national origin, creed, religion, and social position. Homelessness has a historical domain in our lived experiences either directly or indirectly, familial or community, national or international. I will speak with you about trends in understanding youth homelessness: service delivery, program planning, and engagement within a limited scope. While COVID-19 highlighted the disparities and gaps in services to the homeless population, it also exposes the deficiencies in selective programs that excluded homeless youths.
Implementing Best Practices in Rapid Rehousing
Brian Alexander, Project Director, North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness
Rapid rehousing is a key intervention to help communities make homelessness rare, brief, and one-time only. In this session, we will discuss the key components of rapid rehousing and how to use short- and medium-term financial assistance and supports to end homelessness for good. This session aims to help established rapid rehousing projects learn how to improve practices and learn new approaches that can better assist households to find and maintain permanent housing long-term.
North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness Annual Meeting | 12:45-2:15pm
All are welcome to join this session, hosted by NCCEH staff and Board members. NCCEH will share updates on the work of the Coalition, its current strategic planning process, and will have breakout rooms to solicit input from participants on issues relevant to partners and providers across the state.
Workshop Breakout 3 | 2:30-3:30pm
Insights from the NC BoS CoC Lived Expertise Advisory Council
Rachelle Dugan, Housing Case Manager, Thrive
Eric Edwards, Corporate Compliance Officer, Transylvania Association for Disabled Citizens
Alyce Knaflich, Founding Director, Aura Home Women Vets
Jefferey Rawlings, SSO-Coordinated Entry Director, Johnston Lee Harnett Community Action
Jaime Stepp, Member, NC BoS CoC Lived Expertise Advisory Council
This panel presentation will feature the members of the Lived Expertise Advisory Council (LEAC) of the NC Balance of State CoC. Panelists will share insights from their experiences of homelessness and the services they received, as well as the history and vision of the LEAC to impact policy and governance throughout the CoC.
ESG 101
Chris Battle, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Alissa Pritchett, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Lisa Worth, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
ESG Office staff will provide a broad overview of the ESG Program, including a discussion of eligible program types and expenses. This session is a great resource for anyone new to ESG or anyone that needs a refresher on the basic elements of the ESG program.
Workshop Breakout 4 | 3:45-4:45pm
Street Outreach. How to Work Smarter, Not Harder.
Liz Kline, Strategic Account Manager, Capitol Broadcasting Company
Melissa McKeown, Chief Executive Officer, Community Shelter of Union County
Melissa McKeown has been doing street outreach for ten years and has learned about the importance of building relationships in local communities. A community response is crucial to be effective at street outreach. Lasting impact requires all hands on deck. But how do you begin to build community response efforts? Melissa will walk you through this.
Liz Kline is a digital outreach marketing specialist that has been doing digital targeting for over a decade. With limited manpower, COVID restrictions, and general difficulty reaching vulnerable populations, Liz found a way to reach homeless youth through digital targeting tactics. The ads served to youth connected them with educational information about human trafficking and human trafficking resources in North Carolina. Learn more about these digital tools that can be used in new ways to help reinforce your street outreach OR to even enhance your community response efforts.
Working While Receiving Disability Benefits: The Pros and Cons
Michelle Armstrong-Lavine, SOAR Coordinator and Local SOAR Lead, Mecklenburg County – Criminal Justice Services
Sheila Crump, Social Service Program Coordinator and Local SOAR Lead, Mecklenburg County | CSS | Housing and Homeless Service
Due to post-COVID-19 pandemic inflation and escalating housing costs, surviving exclusively on social security disability cash benefits is becoming increasingly challenging. Many social security disability recipients are considering returning to the workforce but are impeded by the likelihood of their cash benefits being terminated. This workshop highlights options to increase the income, independence, and self-sufficiency of social security benefit recipients and outlines the rules and factors that should be considered when receiving disability benefits and deciding whether to return to the workforce. This information can be useful to case managers, social workers, human service professionals, or anyone that knows someone that is receiving social security disability benefits.
Financial Procurement
Chris Battle, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Alissa Pritchett, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Lisa Worth, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
24 CFR 570.500 requires that ESG Recipients have a sound financial management system in place to ensure appropriate, accurate, and timey financial transactions. In this session ESG office staff will discuss the different elements of a sound financial management and procurement policy.
Day 2
Workshop Breakout 5 | 10-11am
Building Capacity for Your Organization (10am-12:15pm)
Beth Bordeaux, Co-owner/Senior Advisor, Partners for Impact
Stan Holt, Co-owner/Senior Advisor, Partners for Impact
All of us are committed to improving the services for those who are homeless in the community. In order to do that, we have to continue building our individual, organizational, and community capacity. This session will introduce participants to the Marguerite Casey Organizational Assessment Tool. After a short introduction to the tool, participants will be able to do a simple assessment of their organization. Through this interactive session participants will begin identifying strategies and activities that will help them improve their organization’s capacity. You will develop clear take home steps that will help you move to the next level.
This workshop runs through both Workshop Breakout 5 and Workshop Breakout 6. If you are interested in participating, please join at 10am and plan to participate through 12:15.
Roadmap for Authentic Partnerships with Persons of Lived Experience
Ron Clark, Charlotte-Mecklenburg CoC Lived Experience Committee
Maseta Dorley, CEO, MDM Global Consulting
James Lee, Charlotte-Mecklenburg CoC Lived Experience Committee
Branden Lewis, Mecklenburg County Community Support Services
Erin Nixon, Mecklenburg County Community Support Services
James Searcy, Charlotte-Mecklenburg CoC Lived Experience Committee
Valerie Townsend, Charlotte-Mecklenburg CoC Lived Experience Committee
The pandemic has exposed a lot of flaws in our system and has amplified that ending homelessness in the community cannot be successful without persons of lived experience supporting and leading the work. Attendees will receive real time, accurate information and best practices to influence system design and change.
Workshop Breakout 6 | 11:15am-12:15pm
Building Capacity for Your Organization Continued (10am-12:15pm)
Beth Bordeaux, Co-owner/Senior Advisor, Partners for Impact
Stan Holt, Co-owner/Senior Advisor, Partners for Impact
See above for workshop description. This workshop runs through both Workshop Breakout 5 and Workshop Breakout 6. If you are interested in participating, please join at 10am and plan to participate through 12:15.
Fair Market Rent and Rent Reasonableness
Chris Battle, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Katherine Fowler, Outreach Manager, Socialserve
Alissa Pritchett, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Lisa Worth, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Fair Market Rent and rent reasonableness are two HUD-required elements for their housing stabilization programs. This session will go over the differences between the two and how to determine unit eligibility. This session will also feature a live demonstration of the Socialserve rent reasonableness tool with the opportunity to ask the expert questions about the use and implementation in your agency.
Break | 12:15-2:15
Workshop Breakout 7 | 2:15-3:15
Lowering Barriers to Shelter
Allie Card, Project Specialist, North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness
Jane Earnest, Executive Director, Family Care Center
Laurel McNamee, Project Specialist, North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness
This session will detail some of the essential components and best practices for operating a low-barrier, Housing First emergency shelter. Relevant to both general population and domestic violence shelters, attendees will hear key strategies and impacts of increasing access to shelter entry and best practices to support a greater number of clients in achieving permanent housing.
Federal and State Housing Policy Updates
Ryan Fehrman, Executive Director, North Coalition to End Homelessness
Samuel Gunter, Executive Director, North Carolina Housing Coalition
North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness Executive Director Ryan Fehrman and North Carolina Housing Coalition Executive Director Samuel Gunter will offer updates on funding and policy shifts that impact housing at the federal and state level.
Workshop Breakout 8 | 3:30-4:30
Using Trauma-Informed Relationships to Empower Homeless Students and Survivors: Strategies, Tools, and Resources to Create Positive Outcomes
Winona Coveney, Counselor and Housing Case Manager, Friend to Friend
Anne Friesen, Executive Director, Friend to Friend
Cheryl Fuller, McKinney-Vento Homeless Services Coordinator, Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), Foster Care Coordinator, Homebound Services Coordinator, Franklin County Schools
Part 1: Cheryl Fuller
The intersectionality between trauma and homelessness means we need many important skills for building meaningful relationships with our students. We want to ensure that we can empower our students and help them enhance their resilience skills. In the first part of this session Cheryl Fuller, McKinney-Vento Liaison and former teacher, counselor, and principal, will take a look at what important elements need to be considered in building and holding these relationships as a priority in our work with children and families.
Part 2: Anne Friesen and Winona Coveney
In the second part of this session Executive Director Dr. Anne Friesen and Director of Counseling and Housing Winona Coveney will share specific tools and strategies using a trauma-informed & survivor-centered lens in their work with survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking. Effective strategies will be shared to promote positive client outcomes through wraparound case management focused on client goals and resources to address barriers to homelessness and self-sufficiency.
Transitioning from CV Funding
Chris Battle, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Alissa Pritchett, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
Lisa Worth, ESG Homeless Programs Coordinator, NC DHHS Division of Aging and Adult Services
With ESG CV funding nearing an end, there are many questions about how to continue the needed services and financial assistance for RRH and Prevention clients. This session will discuss the transition from ESG CV to another funding source, including the elements that must be met for the client to be eligible for transfer. Topics will also include preparing for transition at the community level.
