This report was prepared for the Illinois Department of Human Services by Timothy P. Johnson and Ingrid Graf of the Survey Research Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and coordinated by Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.

This document reports the findings from a study designed to (1) assess the needs of unaccompanied homeless youth (UHY) in Illinois and (2) provide statewide estimates of the number of these youth in Illinois. For the purposes of this project, an unaccompanied homeless youth was defined as an individual age 21 or younger who, at the time of data collection, was not primarily in the care of a parent or legal guardian and who lacked a safe or stable living arrangement. Wards of the state or youth who had formed stable private living arrangements did not fit our definition.

This study included two main data collection efforts: (1) a representative survey of service providers in Illinois who provide assistance to unaccompanied homeless youth and (2) a representative survey of UHY currently receiving services in Illinois. Complete listing and access info »

In 2003, Mayor Daley signed on to a 10-year plan to end homelessness in Chicago. The premise of the plan is to transform the homeless service system from one based on shelter to one based on permanent housing and prevention of homelessness.

While the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless agrees with this strategy for assisting homeless individuals and individuals at risk of homelessness, a review of the city's plan and its recent actions to implement the plan reveals that:

- The city is not actually taking the steps it says it is taking to achieve its goal

- The plan grossly underestimates the demand for homeless services in Chicago and the resources needed to accomplish its goal.

- Thousands of people are likely to end up abandoned and only a limited number of people helped in 2012, the year the plan is expected to be fully implemented. Complete listing and access info »

On October 31, 2001, 60 members of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless conducted in-depth, one-on-one surveys with 235 of the 1,117 women detained that day in Cook County Jail.

These surveys were designed and conducted to gain an understanding of women's lives that may dictate and support policy initiatives and further direct service providers in assisting those in need. This study was conducted to document the lives of women detained in Cook County Jail and promote understanding of their many experiences. It reveals a great deal about the lives, current circumstances, and future hopes of 235 women detained that day. Complete listing and access info »

The war in Afghanistan, and the resulting increase in the number of refugees and internally displaced persons, focuses our attention on homelessness at an international level. This policy paper represents an effort to examine homelessness created as a direct result of war, and to recommend ways to reduce conflict and prevent war. Complete listing and access info »

CCH estimates that, over the course of a year, more than 25,000 youth in Illinois experience homelessness. Homeless youth are between the ages of 14 and 21 who have left home because of serious family problems, are not in a safe and stable living situation, and cannot be reunited with their families. Complete listing and access info »