Coalition for the Homeless of Houston / Harris County

Data management: the Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/harris County serves as the repository of knowledge about homelessness services and related issues in the houston areas by serving as lead agency of the Homeless management information system (hmis), coordinated access system (cas), and through performance measurement activities. the hmis is the online database used to record and track services and housing options provided to individuals experiencng homelessness. We use hmis data to identify service gaps and to monitor our progress towards ending homelessness. We also create and publish performance measurement dashboards that compare performance on behalf of the larger system. These dashboards present data as it is enterd in hmis and compares (see schedule o for continuation)it to national targets set by the u.s. department of housing and urban development (hud), as well as local targets set by our community of Homeless response service providers. These dashboards allow our system to track its progress, monitor our steady state when goals are reached, and be transparent in all that is done.

Strategic planning: the Coalition helps to define, guide, facilitate, monitor, and improve the planning process and monitor progress against the current strategic plan. We ensure that an effective, resource-efficient planning process is used to collect and integrate coc partner and staff inputs. We assist the steering committee (coc "board") in creating and refining a meaningful and relevant strategic plan to end homelessness. We ensure that the strategic plan to end homelessness is implemented and effective. We set ambitious plans for system growth requiring continuous monitoring and refinement. We translate plans into achievable deliverables and ensure that we execute on proposed deliverables to accomplish the larger plan. We expand resources for people experiencing homelessness.

Program management: the Coalition for the Homeless has developed and manages important programs that impact stakeholders and individuals experiencing homelessness. We serve as the lead agency to the houston/pasadena/harris county/fort bend county/montgomery County continuum of care (coc), known locally as the way home. This includes staffing the coc steering committee and workgroups, managing the annual point-in-time Homeless count, submitting the annual collaborative application for federal funding on behalf of all local agencies, and system-level encampment decommissioning. We also manage Homeless court, which Homeless individuals can access through their case managers. Finally, we manage federal, state and local grants from both government (see schedule o for continuation) and private funders on behalf of the coc system. Funds flow through the Coalition to approved partner agencies for delivery of specific programs. Coalition staff are responsible for ensuring fund are being spent as intended and that no individual falls through the crack.