HUD Region II hosts Federal Interagency Working Group on Runaway and Homeless LGBTQ Youth

First row - Dr. Tanya Pagan Raggio-Ashley, Senior Medical Officer, DHHS HRSA; Mica O'Brien, Intern, Supportive Housing Network NY; Edline Jacquet, Senior Policy Analyst, Supportive Housing Network NY, Deborah Harper, Assistance Commissioner, Vulnerable & Special Needs Youth, NYC Department of Youth & Community Development; Natasha Saxton, Compliance Branch Chief, HUD Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, Soraya Elcock, Strategy Officer, Hetrick-Martin Institute. Second row - Fredrick Ginyard, Director of Organizing, FIERCE, Inc.; Samuel Miller, HUD Senior Management Analyst; Nancy Downing ,Director of Advocacy, Legal Services; Vincent Hom, Director, HUD Office of Community Planning and Development; John Leo, Facilitator of Development, Theatre of the Oppressed NYC; Lillian Rivera, Director of Advocacy, Hetrick-Martin Institute; Matthew Lattimer, Community Relation Services, Department of Justice.

New York, NY - The HUD Region II New York City Regional Office hosted multiple federal, state and city agencies to discuss issues and available resources for runaway and homeless youth, with emphasis on the LGBTQ community.

HUD Region II Senior Management Analyst Samuel Miller coordinated the event moderated by Edline Jaquet, Policy Analyst, of the Supportive Housing Network of New York.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, New York State offices of Children and Family Services, Temporary Disability Assistance, Department of Health, and the Office of Mental Health; as well as the New York City offices of Youth and Community Development, Homeless Services, Administration for Children's Services, and the Human Resources Administration, discussed chronic problems of runaway and homeless youth, and brought to the forefront pressing issues that warrant immediate attention to facilitate addressing the needs of runaway and homeless LGBTQ youth. The group focused on sharing their resources to assist this community and detail action items that can be addressed to improve the options for homeless youth.

The group will continue to meet to focus on maximizing available resources in the hopes of improving the quality of life of these youths.

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