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E-Newsletter for August 26, 2008In this issue:
An update from the Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, an independent research project
New! Miami Among Cities Making Progress to End Homelessness Among people with the shared goal of reducing homelessness, there are differences of opinion about how well communities around the country are addressing the problem, though many agree that progress has been made. The rift could be seen last month on the national level, when the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released its Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress, showing a 30 percent reduction in the number of chronically homeless people. The total number of homeless people – both chronic and otherwise – counted on a single night in January dropped from 754,147 in 2005 to 666,295 in 2007. Federal officials attributed the decline to an eight-year-old strategy known as “housing first,” which made permanent shelter top priority in addressing homeless people’s needs. But some advocates for the homeless criticized the numbers’ accuracy. Those same differences of opinion can be seen at the local level – even as public-private partnerships make advances in the effort to combat homelessness. In Miami, a hurricane galvanized community leaders to take a new approach to homelessness more than 15 years ago. Before Hurricane Andrew devastated South Florida in 1992, the National Coalition for the Homeless had taken the unusual step of designating Miami the “meanest city” in America for its treatment of homeless people, which included frequent arrests for the crime of living on the street. Now the group points to the city as a model of progress in the fight against homelessness. Click here to read more by Roundtable Correspondent Claire Hughes. New! An Interview with Cheryl Magee and Mary Ambrose of the United Way for Greater New Orleans Faith-Based Initiative Cheryl Magee is the United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area’s director of Faith-Based Initiatives, a program created in May 2007 to engage, develop and organize the work of faith-based organizations in efforts to rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Mary Ambrose is senior vice president of Community Impact at United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area. A licensed graduate social worker with more than 13 years’ experience in social services, she has worked with the United Way for the past 10 years. They talked to the Roundtable about the Faith-Based Initiative’s efforts to help re-build New Orleans three years after Katrina hit shore. Click here to read the interview. Weekly Digest of Federal Grants with Faith-Based and Community Organization Eligibility The grant opportunities this week for community and faith-based organizations are through programs administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Potential applicants should be aware that some grant programs require specific technical expertise, or experience in particular foreign countries. Click here for the grants digest.
Roundtable Digest of Current Faith-Based News Stories
Fay Arrived While Immokalee Still Waited For '05 Wilma Repairs http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8704 Churches still send help to Gulf Coast; Katrina recovery to take 10 years http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8705
So Many Journeys Home; So Many Not Yet Complete http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8706
Bush/Obama Faith-based Initiative Fundamentally Flawed http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8707
Under Pressure, Bills Are Paid; Charity Owed Its Students State Funds http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8708
More People Seek Help to Pay Rising Utility Bills http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8709
Faith-Based Group Returns Challenged Funding http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8710
Church Leaders Attend Summit: Representatives from Faith Organizations Gather In Preparation for Disasters http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8711
Salinas Puts Faith to Work http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8712
Church Chiefs To Get Trade Lessons http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8713
Methodist Healthcare Ministries Gives $7 Million To Homeless Effort http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8714
Disaster Preparation for Churches http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8715
Bishop To Feds-- End Mass Immigration Raids http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8716
Forging An Alliance In Times Of Disaster http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8717
Bush Plan Would Blunt State Birth Control Law http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8718
Affordable Housing For Seniors Opens; Hollygrove Complex Has 30 Apartments http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8719
Teachers Sought For State's New Healthy Marriage Initiative http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8720
Gov. Jindal Won't Renew Anti-Discrimination Order http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8721
Head Of White House Faith- Based Office Resigns http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8722
Urban Ministry Offered At Nu http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8723
Weekly Opinion Roundup - 8/26/2008 http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/news_opinion_8_26_08.cfm The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy promotes informed debate on the issue of publicly funded faith-based social service. Supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts, the Roundtable provides independent, non-partisan research on the scope and scale of faith-based social services, their effectiveness, how public resources are being used in providing such services, and the legal and regulatory issues involved. The Roundtable's comprehensive web site makes this research and related information easily available. It can be accessed by clicking here: The Roundtable 411 State Street Albany, New York 12203 518-443-5014 |
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