HR0135 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0135 LRB099 05735 GRL 25779 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Homeless youth have a higher crime rate than those with stable housing; an estimated number of approximately 26,400 youth experience homelessness in Illinois over the course of a year; and

WHEREAS, In 2005, a state-wide study of homeless youth found that 22% had been kept in juvenile detention, at the average cost of $53,645 per student annually; and

WHEREAS, One method of mitigating this growing problem is to get homeless youth active in pursuing post-secondary education; homeless youth are severely underrepresented in the university population and are often held back due to the lack of funding for housing, leaving a cycle of inhibition; and

WHEREAS, In order to combat this trend, an initiative has been proposed that would provide housing scholarships to students in undergraduate colleges and universities who self-report as homeless; the program would give these students aid in paying for non-campus housing, which would allow for these students to attend a university without the worry of finding funding for housing; applicants would be required to get a Homeless Status Certification from the Secretary of State Driver Services department and be full-time students; and

WHEREAS, This program would allow some of our most vulnerable citizens to receive a quality education and become productive members of society; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the boards of trustees of every public university in the State of Illinois to adopt a program that provides housing scholarships to college students that are registered as homeless and to include funding for this program in their appropriations requests to the General Assembly; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be sent to the boards of trustees of the 9 public universities in the State of Illinois.