As part of their coursework, three Clinton School students will partner with a coalition of agencies to study ways to better serve the homeless in Little Rock.
Clinton School students Francennett Herrerra of Chicago, Ill., Matthew Lyon of Mobile, Ala., and John Vollertsen of Parthenon, Ark., will meet with government, faith-based, and nonprofit agencies to investigate the current needs of the homeless population in the community. Their work will promote the services already in place and identify needs that are not currently being fulfilled.
A January 2011 count found that at least 1,276 people were homeless in Central Arkansas. Dot Robbins, a doctor of psychology and homeless outreach coordinator estimates the number of homeless to be substantially higher.
“We simply can’t count all homeless individuals,” Robbins said. “There are people living in the woods and in places where we can’t reach them.”
The count was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and included the four-county area of Pulaski, Lonoke, Prairie, and Saline Counties.
To supplement the existing data devoted to the homelessness issue in Little Rock, the students will be seeking interviews with a wide range of stakeholders from a variety of groups. The information obtained from these meetings will be essential to setting goals for city and outreach agencies to better support homeless individuals and families on their way to housing stability.
Robbins, along with Arkansas Homeless Coalition co-chair Dr. Carolyn Turturro, will assist the students in the needs assessment. Turturro is a professor of social work at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
“The work that these students are doing is vital to understanding the complexity of the homelessness issue and how we can better serve our homeless friends,” Turturro said.
Vollertsen, Lyon and Herrerra have been engaged throughout their lives in a variety of social issues. Vollertsen has recently returned from a year teaching English in China and has previously worked with grassroots organizing campaigns.
Lyon worked as a teacher for two years in the Czech Republic, and has most recently conducted research for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration relating to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. Herrerra is a recent graduate of Philander Smith College and has been involved with multiple homelessness organizations in Little Rock.
“After all of my work with the Little Rock homeless community, I know that our project is greatly needed and we hope it will have a positive lasting effect,” Herrerra said.