Category: workforce development

The Moving Ahead Program of St. Francis House, Boston

Several years ago, I had the privilege of being invited to a special graduation celebration for a half-dozen adults who had successfully completed the Moving Ahead Program offered by the St. Francis House in Boston, Massachusetts.

“MAP”, as it’s known, is a 14-week job- and life-skills training program for individuals who have experienced serious disruption in their personal life: homelessness, addiction, mental illness, incarceration.

MAP offers essential tools, training, and support to those who are accepted into the program:

  • Transitional housing
  • One-on-one job coaching support
  • Internship opportunities
  • Weekly stipend and public transportation pass
  • Clothing and image consultation program
  • Individualized counseling, referrals, and legal support
  • Lifetime access to St. Francis House services through its Alumni Program

MAP “Life Skills” instructors teach:

  • Resume writing
  • Online job searching, filing applications electronically
  • Preparing for interviews
  • Setting goals
  • Developing positive interpersonal relationships
  • Dealing with trauma and negative emotions

The MAP program works!

  • A total of 97 students were served in 2018, with a graduation rate of 70%
  • 82% of graduates were employed at time of graduation
  • Average hourly wage of employed graduates was 42% more than the Massachusetts minimum wage

The MAP program has been recognized!

  • Selected by HUD to serve as a “best practices” model for other HUD-funded programs considering replicating MAP
  • MAP-Topeka (Kansas) and MAP-St. Louis (Missouri) both launched

But for me, the MAP success I’ll never forget was what I experienced at the graduation ceremony:

  • the JOY and GRATITUDE of the graduates!

For more on the Moving Ahead Program at St. Francis House, Boston, see https://stfrancishouse.org/programs/moving-ahead-program/

“Flipping the Script” on Homelessness & Unemployment

Ever lost a job? Suffered domestic violence? Had an expensive medical emergency? Survived a natural disaster?

If you did, you may have suffered “situational homelessness”…that is, you may have been forced to live without housing for a while.

Of the estimated 3 million Americans who are homeless, more than 70% are in situational homelessness.

To make matters worse, situational homelessness often leads to job loss. The combination of homelessness and unemployment makes it that much more difficult to get back on your feet.

In the Washington, DC area, that’s where Shelters to Shutters makes matters better.  Shelters to Shutters (www.shelterstoshutters.org):

  • Provides housing and employment for “ready to work” individuals.
  • Works to “flip the script” – to transition “individuals and families out of homelessness to economic self-sufficiency by educating and engaging the real estate industry to provide employment and housing opportunities.”

Launched in Vienna, Virginia, Shelters to Shutters has expanded its operation to a dozen other cities, including Atlanta, Houston, Nashville, and Portland.

Shelters to Shutters screens job candidates and refers them to property management companies looking for full-time help. In return, the hired participants get discounted housing at the buildings where they work.

Some of the jobs its participants hold in the real estate industry are maintenance technicians, groundskeepers, service technicians, and leasing agents. Employee retention rate is close to 90%; about 90% of employees have received promotions or wage increases; and more than 90% have not had to re-enter homeless service programs. For more about Shelters to Shutters, see also https://tinyurl.com/y4edowlp