This project was a collaboration between CIR and The Night Ministry. At the request of the City of Chicago's Department of Children and Youth Services (CYS), CIR conducted a research project to assess the needs of homeless youth from the perspectives of the youth themselves. The study identified the needs of homeless youth in Chicago, focusing on youth in shelter, on the street and in other unsafe and unstable living situations. The study obtained useful data on differences in needs between different subgroups of youth such as those experiencing a first episode of homelessness, those youth who cycle in and out of homelessness, and those experiencing chronic homelessness. The final report, "Wherever I Can Lay My Head: Homeless Youth on Homelessness" was the catalyst for the new Commissioner of CYS to meet with the Department of Housing and the Department of Human Services to identify who was currently serving these youth and how services could be improved.

For further information, contact Rebekah Levin at rlevin@impactresearch.org.

Project Publications

Wherever I Can Lay My Head: Homeless Youth on Homelessness
March 2005
This report presents the data from CIR's 2004 survey of 400 homeless youth to learn what the youth themselves identify as their needs, the resources available to them, and the ways that the various systems serving homeless youth might be improved.
Executive Summary
Full Report
Homeless Youth Resource Directory