High School “Hurricane Relief Project” Brings Donation to Houston
Communications Admin • June 22, 2018
In May, the Coalition for the Homeless was contacted by Mr. Brian McDonald, a teacher at Charles E. Jordan High School in Durham, NC. Mr. McDonald explained that his “Poverty in America” course helped students understand the history, causes, and effects of poverty and how poverty impacts various groups in American society.
Due to the significant impact Hurricane Harvey made in the Houston area, the Poverty in America class decided to make a difference through a “Hurricane Relief Project.”
The students worked together to research organizations making a difference in areas that have been affected by natural disasters such as Florida, Puerto Rico, and Texas. Each student was required to submit a proposal on behalf of the organization they researched. The students then used this research to lobby for the organization they represented to be the winning proposal. To our benefit, the Coalition for the Homeless was named as one of the agencies to receive a donation raised by the students and faculty.
The students recognized the incredible impact Harvey made to our homeless system. During our recent State of Homelessness breakfast, the Coalition revealed the 2018 Homeless Count & Survey results
which showed an increase for the first time since 2011. The majority of the increase was seen in the unsheltered homeless population; 18% of unsheltered homeless individuals surveyed on the night of the Homeless Count reported that their homelessness was due to Hurricane Harvey.
“Hurricane Harvey was a major disruption to the work of The Way Home, both in terms of diverting resources and contributing to the increase in unsheltered homelessness,” said Marilyn Brown, President/CEO of the Coalition. “In just 41 days, partners of The Way Home shifted resources to successfully prevent homelessness for nearly 1,000 people who had nowhere to go after the storm. But this had a huge impact on the homeless programs already in place and was a devastating distraction from our planned work in 2018.”
The Coalition is honored to be chosen as one of the recipients of the ’2018 “Poverty in America” Donation Project.’ Thank you to the students of Charles E. Jordan High School for your support!
Houston, Texas (February 24, 2026) – This week, the nonprofit Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County (CFTH) is leading the annual Point-in-Time Homeless Count & Survey (“PIT Count”) to determine the number of people experiencing homelessness across Houston and throughout Harris, Fort Bend, and Montgomery counties. “We may see a slight uptick in the number this year, but we have a plan,” said Kelly Young, President & CEO of CFTH. “With the support of the City of Houston, Harris County, and private funders, we have been piloting new interventions to shorten the length of time people in our region experience homelessness. With adequate funding, we look forward to expanding those interventions to help people regain lives of self-determination.” CFTH coordinates the Houston region’s public-private homeless response system, The Way Home . Through this collaboration, The Way Home partners have successfully housed over 36,000 people since 2012. CFTH will release the results of Houston’s 2026 PIT Count in the summer, following independent verification by an epidemiologist. These findings will provide insight into how factors such as increases in the cost of living and the end of federal pandemic relief funding have impacted homelessness in our region. More information about the 2026 Point-in-Time Homeless Count & Survey The PIT Count offers a snapshot of how many people are experiencing homelessness in our region on a single night. This year, the “night of record” is Monday, Feb. 23. CFTH determines the number of people staying in shelters on that night by pulling records electronically from the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) . The unsheltered count will be conducted on the following days, from Tuesday, Feb. 24 to Thursday, Feb. 26. More than 400 volunteers and staff of local nonprofit service provider partners will canvass the three-county region to survey people living unsheltered, using an app on their mobile devices. Results from the 2026 PIT Count will help gauge the progress of The Way Home’s ongoing collaborative efforts. It will also help CFTH and partner homeless outreach teams understand geographic shifts and target their outreach throughout the year. The PIT Count illuminates specific programmatic gaps and provides additional information needed to allocate resources most efficiently. The PIT Count is a requirement of the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) for the annual Continuum of Care (CoC) funding process. HUD furnishes the majority of funding for programs that provide housing and supportive services to people experiencing homelessness in the region. In 2024, HUD granted more than $71 million to the Houston area.
As lead agency to The Way Home Continuum of Care (CoC), CFTH is working with local governmental entities to advocate on behalf of people experiencing homelessness to ensure their needs are being considered as winter weather affects our region. We will make frequent updates as we receive information. Please check back often for the latest information. Last updated 02/01/2026 at 12:00 p.m.
While our system has helped thousands of people move from homelessness to housing, this year’s results highlight the need to broaden our approach.
