In August, the Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness, led by Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan and made up of the Commissioners of 14 state agencies, received feedback on the draft of its newly developed Housing, Racial, and Health Justice plan for people facing homelessness. Thank you to all of you who reviewed the draft plan and shared your thoughts! In total, there were over 5,000 views of the draft plan on the website with 140 comments made in the interactive document, 43 people joined the special webinar to take public comment, and numerous people shared their thoughts by email and the contact us form. Your feedback is helping agencies and the Justice consultants refine the strategies and actions and will inform the ongoing implementation of the plan. Take a look at this high-level summary of themes we heard from across all the public comments.
The Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness is holding their next meeting on Friday, October 27 from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. to commit to the justice plan and launch the implementation phase. These meetings are open to the public and we would love to have you join and listen to the conversation.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email from GoToWebinar containing information about joining the webinar. If you have any questions about your registration, please contact sue.hite-kirk@state.mn.us.
The Lived Experience Advocacy Network (LEAN) has developed a new job and volunteer board on their website. The goal is to create a central place to share any job or volunteer position that you hope to get more visibility with the lived experience community. The position does not need to be for a job or opportunity for only with people with lived experience. If you have a position to share, you can complete the form on their website, https://www.mnlean.org/job-volunteer-board, or email hello@mnlean.org.
LEAN is an independent group of diverse advocates who share the experience of homelessness. They work to enable independent advocacy, maintain a rich resource drive, and provide opportunities for community to engage, learn, and make an impact. Learn more about LEAN’s vision and work and sign up for their newsletter to stay in touch at https://www.mnlean.org/.
The Department of Public Safety (DPS) Office of Justice Programs (OJP) has released a request for proposals to fund community-based nonprofits and/or tribal government programs that wish to start up a transitional housing program (THP) or increase the number of supported households in their currently operating transitional housing program. The funding supports transitional housing for survivors of domestic violence and/or sexual assault experiencing housing instability. Grant funds may not be used to provide temporary or extended stay emergency shelter. Up to $712,500 is available for applications for a 23-month grant period from February 1, 2024 through December 31, 2025. See full Request for Proposals for all the details and requirements.
Applications are due Tuesday, November 28, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. Please submit any questions regarding this RFP by email to danielle.lindner@state.mn.us.
MDH continues to have no cost resources available to support homeless service sites as you respond to COVID-19. Available resources include:
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COVID-19 rapid antigen tests. Homeless service sites can order rapid antigen tests from MDH to test staff and clients for COVID-19. Order tests here: https://redcap.health.state.mn.us/redcap/surveys/?s=WL9N3NLT4L
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Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). MDH has masks, gloves, face shields, and gowns available to homeless service sites. If interested in these items, email Health.R-congregate@state.mn.us with the amount and size (for gloves) of each item you are requesting.
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COVID-19 medications. Staff and clients with symptoms of COVID-19 who have tested positive or been diagnosed by a provider as having COVID-19 are eligible to receive treatment at no-cost. Patients can access treatment using the web, Cue Health App, or by telephone at https://care.cuehealth.com/mn.
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Vaccine Clinics. MDH will be offering vaccine clinics through contracted vaccine partners for staff and residents or clients at shelters, day centers, supportive housing programs, and other congregate settings. MDH is working with community partners to have gift cards available at vaccine clinics. Eligible organizations can request to have our vaccinators come on-site for a clinic through this request form: COVID-19 Vaccination Event Request Form for Congregate Settings.
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Technical assistance. If you would like additional support managing an outbreak or want to consult with MDH about a specific COVID-19 response challenge in your facility, please reach out to the COVID-19 Highly Impacted Settings Team at Health.R-congregate@state.mn.us. We are here to help!
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Help us spread the word about a new newsletter for engagement opportunities for people who have faced or are currently facing homelessness. The Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness is building a new newsletter list to share opportunities for people who have faced or are currently facing homelessness to share their input, ideas, and expertise. Interested individuals can sign up for the newsletter by filling out this form. We will share a range of opportunities in this newsletter from state agencies and partner organizations and the newsletter will be sent out as opportunities are available. Please email elizabeth.dressel@state.mn.us if you have any questions.
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