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Homeless Youth: Earlier Intervention Would Help

On December 26, 2025, Covenant House and the University of California, Berkeley released a report urging earlier school and social-service intervention, finding youth pathways differ from adults.
Analysis shows many youth pathways don’t appear in existing homelessness data, with respondents citing being kicked out, running away, unsafe living situations, aging out of foster care, housing affordability, and climate-driven events displacing more than 5,100 students.
Through more than 400 interviews, researchers found young people recently wanted earlier guidance and tailored mental health care, while Mikayla Foreman, 20, said school understanding might have prevented her homelessness.
States such as California and Florida have begun pilot programs and policy changes to help vulnerable youth, including Florida’s college housing priority and Hawaii’s permanent youth drop-in and crisis-diversion program.
Intervening upstream while young people are still developing could prevent shelter entry, with researchers recommending schools, health-care settings, youth-specific housing, cash assistance, and family conflict resolution.

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The Columbian

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Homeless youth: Earlier intervention would help

Twenty-year-old Mikayla Foreman knows her experience is meaningful. Dealing with homelessness since age 18 and currently living in a shelter, Foreman has managed to continue her academic journey, studying for exams last month in hopes of attaining a nursing degree. Read more...

7 days ago·Vancouver, United States

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