Staff Spotlight: Meet Mike Nichols!
Communications Admin • April 23, 2019
Michael (Mike) Nichols, Interim CEO/President of the Coalition for the Homeless, joined the organization in January of this year. Born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama, Mike moved to Atlanta, Georgia to attend law school and eventually served as a Georgia State Representative. He then made his way to Houston in 1981 to serve as General Counsel for the Sysco Corporation.
Abbie: What made you interested in fulfilling the role as Interim CEO for the Coalition?
Mike: First, I saw an opportunity to help an extremely important organization (the Coalition) solve one of Houston’s most significant social issues. Second, I saw an opportunity to help improve the government’s approach on the issue of homelessness. The Coalition is in many ways a private/public partnership, and it concerned me that sometimes philanthropy can mask bad government. There is an opportunity to help government and philanthropy work in partnership more effectively. And third, my youngest daughter is a case worker in Seattle, also working in the homeless service system there.
Abbie: Have you always worked for nonprofits? If not, what made you decide to enter the nonprofit world?
Mike: This will actually be my second time working at a nonprofit; I also served as Interim CEO at the Houston Parks Board. Through my career, I have also been able to volunteer for a number of nonprofits. I served as Chairman of the Board of the Houston Food Bank, Chairman of the Board of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, and as an officer of Congregation Beth Israel. I am also currently a board member of the American Jewish Committee.
Abbie: Since you started at the Coalition, what has been your favorite thing about working here and what has been your greatest challenge?
Mike: I would have to say my favorite thing has been the ability to meet the incredible people who are committed to helping our most vulnerable populations.My greatest challenge is understanding a very complex system of homeless solutions, an even more complex system of funding these solutions, and trying to make these systems work as effectively as possible.
Abbie: What are your goals for the future of this organization?
Mike: I really want to help strengthen the organization’s financial position and its reporting so it can grow to support the number of current and future projects that it’s responsible for leading. I also want to work towards improving relationships with our service providers and our funders. And lastly, I would really like to help our employees and their partners work together as seamlessly as possible.
Abbie: Now for the fun questions! What is one thing you would like to mark off your bucket list?
Mike: I’m a swimmer and I would really like to swim from our cabin on Lake Livingston to Pine Island and back, which is about 4 miles!
Abbie: What is one fun fact about yourself?
Mike: I really love to write down memories and short stories. Some stories I have written about include growing up in Birmingham and then a more fictional one about a magical ability to re-do your life.
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.
