'Alternative House' Helps Homeless Students Start Over (VIDEO)

Over one million of America's students are homeless.

Two thousand of them are in Fairfax County, Wash.

The Washington Post reported on various partnerships made with local nonprofit organizations to offer solutions to its local homeless student population.

Solutions are slow-going and flawed, however some programs have seen success.

Landis Brewer, a homeless high school student featured in the video below, was embraced by the Alternative House, a shelter and counseling center for homeless and abused children and teens. He meets with a counselor regularly and is now in a "host home," the program's version of a foster home.

"I have a roof, I have school, I have opportunity."

WATCH:

Comments

[Broderick Crawford]

12:38 PM on 01/03/2011

The House of Representatives honored lame-duck, one-term Nevada Congresswoman and permanent UNLV politics professor Dina Titus (government jobs are like that) by enacting on a voice vote her bill to provide federal funding to schools and food banks to supply weekend meals to "low-income" children.

Ms. Titus called it the "Weekends Without Hunger" bill. How nice. I put "low-income" in quotes because no child will be required to prove he or she is "poor" to get the free stuff — living in a zip code or school district with "a fair number" of poor folk will be deemed sufficient.

In fact, Ms. Titus said during the short debate half the children in Clark County schools are from families who qualify for free or reduced-price meals.

Which is a pretty good working definition of "the poor," for Democratic purposes: "The half of the people who pay no income taxes because they're not rich" ... the net tax consumers whose votes — added to those of government employees — keep so many Democrats in office.

[ptg0]

11:11 AM on 12/31/2010

Welcome to the world of "THIRD WORLD COUNTRIES".

[mamapower]

10:03 PM on 12/28/2010

TAX CUT!?

ugh.

[conservicide]

08:31 PM on 12/28/2010

99.9% of the super wealthy did not get there without doing something unethical or manipulating the system in their favor through lobbyists etc. And when you think about how their kid's sweet 16 party could fund 50 kids educations, it ought to tick you off.

[bessielil]

12:50 PM on 12/28/2010

Just imagine what it means to a young person to have his mother and father move out of the house. Of course the house goes next.

This article is about school age kids who do not know where to turn. For all the feel good attention Blind Side got, it didn't seem to register that homelessness is a real issue affecting the futures of thousands of kids. What are they supposed to do? What do we as a country mean when we say at graduation after graduation, "The children are our future."

Consider non-passage of the DREAM ACT as another facet of pushing away a problem that doesn't seem to be covered by 'family values' the GOP holds so dear. We must have educated young people to grow the country, just on practical grounds, if not a sense of decency.

[mind sheek203]

11:08 AM on 12/28/2010

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System (CMS) recently reported that there are approximately 4,453 homeless children/students in Charlotte, NC. This problem is nationwide, especially in the metropolitian areas.

[teacher39years]

10:38 AM on 12/28/2010

I guess "Compassionate Conservatism" doesn't work.

[mamapower]

10:01 PM on 12/28/2010

Well, there is no passion in conservatism.

That was an election year get out the vote d!rty tricks slogan conjured up in the gop war rooms.

Sad!

[Earfling]

10:04 AM on 12/28/2010

just to mention: in this country there are millions of churches, homeless shelters and a myriad

of other places that will help. You may have to starve in N Korea or parts of Africa; here you don't have to.

[1question]

10:26 AM on 12/28/2010

Did you even read the article i.e. "...millions of churches, homeless shelters and a myriad
of other places that will help..." !?!?

Wow...where do I start...!?!?

Most places only offer short hours, limited overnight (first come first served) stay, back on the street in the morning to start to process all over again. Everything you own...everything that's important to you on your back or in stash place to be stolen later.

Think 'bout this...if you lost everything you had (through whatever circumstances...no money, "family & friends" no option) today where would you turn...where would you go...what would you do...how would you survive...!!?!!

I wish some commenter(s) would at least try gathering some information...some facts before offering baseless boilerplate opinion.

Here's a linky not to far away...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/third-world-america

[Amelie123]

02:39 PM on 12/29/2010

You sound like you've been in these kids' shoes, or have the compassion it takes to learn what their lives are really like. Thanks for the perspective!

[BAMUDA]

10:01 AM on 12/28/2010

Meanwhile, there are approximately 19 million vacant homes in the US. Painful, disturbing and disgraceful math.

[Randy Roy]

09:06 PM on 12/28/2010

Yes but if we let people stay in their houses and not use fraudulent paperwork or shortcuts that violate federal law? How are the 2%er's supposed to line their gilded cages with even more gold?

[Last chance]

09:46 AM on 12/28/2010

Goldman-sachs need to adopt all of them.

[Tuigim]

10:56 AM on 12/28/2010

Oh God no!
Give them loving homes.

[Last chance]

11:00 AM on 12/28/2010

I meant financially...not literally.....LOL

[unrepentant progressive]

08:34 AM on 12/28/2010

Homelessness and American-Style Capitalism are inseparable.

It's good to try to mitigate the problem, but we will never end homeless in America. Making homeless people is one of the things we do best. We're proficient at it. We should offer classes to the northern and western European countries: "How to Increase Homelessness 101."

[BlairCase]

08:46 AM on 12/28/2010

Most European countries, including the United Kingdom, have higher homeless rates than the United States.

[Craig Lane]

08:58 AM on 12/28/2010

Can you back that up with some data?

[unrepentant progressive]

09:21 AM on 12/28/2010

What's Norway's rate of homelessness v. America's? And please site source of info.

[sycodon]

09:51 AM on 12/28/2010

Europe doesn't need lessons as they are doing just fine producing homeless people.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=344_1269090350

There will always be homeless people because with the opportunity to succeed comes the opportunity to fail, with all its nasty ramifications.

[unrepentant progressive]

02:13 PM on 12/28/2010

The linked article you provide isn't very useful. The statistics are iffy (as the article states) and they're twisting the definition of homelessness to include those who live with friends and family. Also, are they including eastern European countries w/ western European countries?

The article is anecdotal at best, not scientific.

That said, I'm willing to believe Europe's problem is bad. In fact, many commentators have noted that much of Europe has adopted trickle-down economics, thus weakening social safety nets.

[afp in Tx]

08:31 AM on 12/28/2010

Heartwarming 'needle' in a bureaucratic morass stack.

[vim876]

08:13 AM on 12/28/2010

That's Fairfax County, VA.

[Ms Smarty Pants]

03:37 AM on 12/28/2010

It's hard enough being a college student, well for those individuals that will actually take their time at the university seriously and apply themselves to acheiving good grades and study habits. Homeless or not, I admire all those who will perservere even though their circumstances are diffulcult.

[realitytrumpsbull]

03:27 AM on 12/28/2010

It's more than just students, that are homeless, there's millions of people across this country, with noplace to live. One straightforward and easy fix is establishing campsites and RV parks, where people of little or no means can go, and be assured of a safe, dry place to sleep, and maybe even a hot meal into the bargain. It'd be nice if the prices and wages and stuff would alter themselves and permit everyone to move indoors, especially in view of the fact that this is December, and sleeping outside at all in some parts of the country at this time of year is to invite hypothermia and frostbite injuries, but any port in a storm, as they say, and campsites and tentage would go a long way towards making life a little easier on people. Better under a tent than on a street corner or park bench. A little organization would be all that's really needed.

[logic-a-go-go]

03:28 AM on 12/28/2010

Good point. Lack of affordable housing is perhaps THE most significant factor affecting rates of homelessness in the US.

[Ms Smarty Pants]

03:48 AM on 12/28/2010

There is this open land area in Ann Arbor, MI where a pretty substantial amont of homless individuals and families live use to live. It was called Tent City. www.michigandaily.com/content/tent-city-eviction-draws-attention-rights-homeless