Students, recognize Philadelphia’s unhoused population

A student urges her peers to support organizations that help homeless individuals on college campuses.

As a college campus in a large city, many Temple students and the surrounding population face housing insecurity that becomes more dire as the winter weather worsens. 

Forty-three percent of students at four-year colleges experienced housing insecurity in the United States, and 14% of those students identified as homeless, according to a 2020 survey by The Hope Center for College, Community and Justice.

Students can make a positive difference in their community by supporting the unhoused population in Philadelphia. Getting involved with local organizations, volunteering at shelters and supporting local legislation are ways for students to benefit those in need.

Donna Bullock, CEO of ProjectHOME, a Philadelphia non-profit working to support homeless and low-income populations, thinks traditional estimates of the homeless youth population are underestimated.

“Many students fall into the ‘sheltered’ category of homelessness, meaning they are not sleeping outside, and are often left out of census efforts like the annual Point-In-Time Count,” Bullock said. 

Homelessness is a spectrum and it goes beyond living on the streets, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Organization. Individuals are considered homeless when they don’t have a stable and suitable residence to spend the night. 

In a city with high rates of homelessness, students must recognize and support the unhoused population. Whether students are aware of it or not, many of their peers are affected by housing insecurity, which is why they should support organizations that aid unhoused people. 

Being a full-time student makes it harder for low-income individuals to both work and attend classes. 

“But it surprises me that [homelessness] is that high at the university level, considering the financial liability of tuition and housing,” said Amrea Jansky, a freshman English major. 

Despite the housing crisis, Philadelphia has fewer connections to rehousing networks and resources for homeless individuals than other large cities, Metro Philadelphia reported

By volunteering, students can help those struggling with housing stability. Philly House on 13th Street near Vine Street is an organization where students can volunteer to clean the shelter, make beds and serve meals to guests. Philabundance Community Kitchen has four locations in the city where students can volunteer to prepare meals for those with basic needs insecurity. 

Students can also help those experiencing housing insecurity through social and political activism. Legislative initiatives, like House Bill 729, would assist Philadelphia homeless youth by providing housing priority in universities and redirecting funding for homeless youth at the college levels. 

“If passed, HB729 would require institutions of higher learning to provide homeless students priority for on-campus housing, to develop plans for access to housing resources during breaks, to provide tuition waivers and to provide a homeless youth liaison to identify services and resources to support homeless students,” Bullock said.

Advocating for the bill would be a step toward achieving a better rehousing network for students. Students can do this by using a search engine to determine their district legislator and contacting them through phone or mail. 

Temple supports students in adverse financial situations by providing food through the Cherry Pantry, in the Howard Gittis Student Center. Students can donate non-perishable food items or hygiene products and work at the pantry to help their peers. Temple also has The Hope Center for Student Basic Needs, located on Broad Street near Tioga Street, which serves as a resource for food or housing-insecure students.

However, living costs for students aren’t the only reason for housing insecurity in Philadelphia. The issues plaguing homeless individuals, particularly college students, aren’t due to individual plights, said Sara Goldrick-Rab, founder of the Believe in Students nonprofit and The Hope Center.  

“It is absolutely a systematic issue and we know that because there’s more than a million college students nationwide who deal with this problem every year,” Goldrick-Rab said. “We didn’t used to know that from federal data, but we now do, and that tells us that this can’t just be the problems of a couple of people making bad decisions. This tells us that systems have to be broken.” 

Homelessness in Philadelphia, especially on college campuses, can be alleviated through local support and advocacy for systematic change and legislation. Students can also help by supporting organizations that advocate to improve the housing crisis and aid people experiencing housing insecurity.

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