Here is the methodology and results of the 2013 Youth Count! conducted in Billings, Montana. This was the first ever survey of homeless youth in this community.
4. Youth Count! 2013
Billings
Metro VISTA
Project
City of
Billings, Co
mmunity
Development
Division
Tumblewee
5. Youth Count! 2013
There was no accurate picture of the number, characteristics and needs of
homeless youth in Billings, Montana. Each January, communities across the
country conduct a census, Point-In-Time (PIT) count of their homeless
populations. Data on unaccompanied homeless youth is currently
unavailable, as a national standard for counting this cohort has not yet been
established. Available PIT data vastly under-represents the number of youth
experiencing homelessness and services required to impact poverty
conditions.
Youth Count! was sponsored by the City of Billings as a component of
Welcome Home Billings, the City's ten-year plan to impact homelessness.
This joint effort between Tumbleweed and the Billings Metro VISTA Project
originated through the City's Community Development Division
6. Definitions of Youth
Homelessness
Homeless: The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
definition of a homeless youth is any child or youth under the age of
eighteen who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime
residence. For example, youth who reside in: runaway/homeless
youth shelters; transitional housing; doubled-up in housing with
other families or friends; couch-surfing; hotels or motels; shelters
with family members; and campgrounds. The definition also
includes those living in places unfit for human habitation, including
cars, abandoned buildings, lots, parks, alleyways, uninhabitable
trailers, or the streets.
Precariously Housed: Youth who are unaccompanied and on
their own including those: in foster care and juvenile justice custody;
who have left the system without a place to live; or placed into
transitional housing including group homes, treatment centers and
shelters.
At-Risk: Youth who are in danger of becoming precariously
housed or homeless due to inadequate financial stability, lack of a
13. Youth Count! Data and
Findings
What do
you need
most in
your life
right now?
“A
family
—just
not
mine”
176 surveys were completed
over a three day period
96 surveys were completed by
youth ages 13-21
73 (76%) youth are
experiencing homelessness
13 (14%) precariously housed
youth
10 (10%) youth who are at-risk
of homelessness
20. 3
3
3
5
5
7
10
23
32
56
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Other*
Shelter/Youth Shelter
Foster Care
Doubled-Up
Car
Group Home
Caretaker/Not Legal Guardian
Legal Guardian
Friend's House/Couch Surfing
Outside
Where do you usually sleep?
96 Respondents - Question indicated 'check all that apply'
21. Yes
33%
No
67%
Have you been in foster care?
36 Respondents+
One
responden
t had been
with 10
foster
parents.
Another
responden
t had lived
in 13
different
foster
homes
25. 4
7
13
6
1
2
14
13
7
Week or less Less than a
Month
Month or
more
Year or more Never Don't know
Last time seen by a health care professional?
33/34 Respondents+
Doctor Dentist
29. 6
2
4
4
7
8
11
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Other*
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Anxiety
Attention Deficit Disorder
Clinical Depression
Bi-Polar Disorder
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Diagnosis
42 Respondents+ - Question allowed multiple responses
*Other includes one response for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and one response for each of the
following disorders: Autism Spectrum; Obsessive Compulsive; Oppositional Defiant; Reactive
30. What is it that
you feel you
don’t have
control over?
“My
life, becau
se my dad
won’t let
me be who
I want to
be”
None
3%
One
31%
Two
23%
Three or
more
43%
How many caregivers have
you grown up with?
35 Respondents+
36. Citations and Information
City of Billings, Community Development
Division, Homeless Initiatives:
http://ci.billings.mt.us/youthcount
Joshua J. Downes & Chelsia Davis
AmeriCorps VISTA, Billings Metro VISTA Project