Improving Lives through Transformational Housing

by Shannon Moriarty · 2009-08-15 06:19:00 UTC
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One of the hardest things about being a single parent, is having to do it all on your own. This is especially true for single parents who experience homelessness. In addition to making ends meet on a meager income, a single parent must handle their children's daily needs, try to increase their earning potential, figure out carless transportation, worry about decent child care, and somehow deal with the trauma of being homelessness.

In a nutshell: life for homeless families with a single parent can be extraordinarily challenging. But leave it to innovative minds to try to meet these needs on a smaller, local scale to make up for where our federal policies are lacking.

Warren Village, in Denver, Colorado, has been serving single parent homeless families for 35 years and is the brains behind the Transformational Housing model. The idea is simple: provide decent subsidized housing for homeless single families, comprehensive family services, quality childcare, and a supportive community. It's a great approach with successes that speak for themselves. You can read more about the model here. 

If you're really on board with this idea, and want to learn more about bringing Transformational Housing to your community, Warren Village is offering a two-day training in October to help providers who want to build capacity to move towards a similar approach. Learn more about the training here.

While the Warren Village model should be lauded for identifying the needs of families and breaking the mold to address them, it's frustrating that our healthcare, workplace, and housing policies have not kept pace with the evolution of the family structure. What was once considered a "non-traditional" household, has now become the norm. Today, one in three children in the U.S. are being raised in a single family household, according to 2007 ACS data.

Wouldn't it be nice if this type of housing was considered normal instead of transformational? If everyone had regular access to high quality childcare, fair workplace policies, quality healthcare, safe neighborhoods, and a supportive community? 

Shannon Moriarty has worked in various homeless shelters and service organizations around the country. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.
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