New program helps homeless youths attend Tulsa-area colleges

“I thought it would be a good way to learn the basics of planting and caring for trees,” Ramon said of his first experience volunteering for Tulsa’s Up with Trees program.

A Texas transplant, he decided to check out the nonprofit beautification effort after relocating to Tulsa in March, and he was invited to help plant trees near 71st Street and Peoria Avenue.

At the time, Ramon, who was living out of his car, had little more going for him than a dream and the desire for a new start.

But since then, life, like those trees, has begun looking up.

One of the first to benefit from a new program launched by the Tulsa Area Higher Education Consortium, Ramon recently moved into a place of his own and is on track to begin college this fall toward his goal of becoming a professional horticulturalist.

A short-term rapid rehousing program that provides up to four months of rent assistance, the effort is aimed at serving youths who want to attend a Tulsa-area college but face the obstacle of homelessness or housing instability.

The goal is to help clients find housing while providing other supports that might be needed to pursue higher education, program officials said.

The program is a partnership between the consortium, which is made up of nine area colleges and universities, and Tulsa’s Housing Solutions under the umbrella of the larger Tulsa Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program, an initiative targeting overall youth homelessness.

The initiative is funded by a two-year HUD grant of $5.38 million, with $750,000 of that dedicated to the consortium’s program.

Laura Latta, consortium executive director, said the idea for a program focusing on homelessness and higher education is unique.

“The feedback that we got from HUD was that our program was really novel, really unique, and fit a unique need that existed. That’s why we were selected,” she said.

“And because nothing like it existed, we had to spend time working with HUD to just get the structure fleshed out.”

‘Vulnerable time’

Because the funding is from a two-year demonstration grant, the effort’s future depends on its ability to demonstrate that the need exists and that the program can help meet it, Latta added.

So far, the demand has exceeded expectations, she said. Since the rehousing program launched in March, three clients have been placed in housing and staff are currently working with 12 others to find housing.

Within its first few days, the program had received 15 referrals, and the list has continued to grow.

The program’s clients are referred from Housing Solutions or the consortium’s member institutions, with priority given to those in greatest need.

To qualify, clients must be between the ages of 18-24, and experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness. They must be currently enrolled or interested in enrolling in one of the consortium’s nine institutions.

Latta said: “A lot of our clients are newly graduated from high school, and they are just trying to figure life out. Some could be in foster situations, and really launching out into their adulthood journeys. It’s a very vulnerable time.”

Affordable housing shortage

Sheika Brantley, one of two fulltime “housing navigators” employed by the program, said the desire is to get each client housed as quickly as possible.

“From there, we provide ongoing case management services so they can remain self-sufficient and continue to live individually and independently.”

Brantley, who worked with the homeless previously at the Salvation Army, said locating housing for clients has been the biggest challenge so far.

The shortage of affordable housing in Tulsa has been well-publicized, and though new efforts to address it are underway, the situation is not going to change overnight.

Brantley spent an entire day last week visiting several apartment complexes with one of her clients. The client, who lost both of her parents to illness, has a newborn baby.

That day’s search was fruitless, she said, and it was discouraging to the client.

But that’s another area where Brantley can be of help. She knows firsthand what that feeling is like.

“I’ve experienced homelessness myself. It was in 2019 and I’ll never forget it,” Brantley said, adding that before she found a place, she moved from hotel to hotel and even slept in her car.

Now, that experience helps her relate better to clients, and she uses it in her efforts to encourage them.

“I want them to understand that there’s always support, and that this cycle can be broken,” Brantley said. “You can go to college. It’s possible. You can be successful. I don’t care what anybody else has told you — you can be great.”

Fits the mission

The consortium, now in its third year, was formed to help its member institutions work better together, coordinating their processes to help more students earn degrees.

Housing, because it can pose obstacles to education, fits within the mission, officials said.

According to national studies, 13-14% of students at two- and four-year institutions experience homelessness at some point in their higher education careers.

Although Brantley has worked with homeless individuals before, this age group of clients is new to her.

She said many of them find themselves homeless at 18 after their parents turn them out of the house.

“That’s been surprising for me,” said Brantley, who has a son in college. “To be 17 or 18 years old and to hear your parents telling you it’s time for you to go, you’re an adult now. I can’t imagine even trying to figure out life at that age.”

‘Leap of faith’

Ramon, 24, was first introduced to Tulsa earlier this year when he helped a friend move here.

“I saw so much potential in Tulsa,” he said. “I thought I’d take a leap of faith and make this a home.”

A first-generation college student, Ramon will start at Tulsa Community College next month to get his basics, with a goal of transferring to Oklahoma State University to pursue a horticulture degree.

He learned about the consortium program in a flier he picked up at the library.

Still living in his car at the time, it took about a week after he was approved to get him placed in his apartment, he said.

Ramon is hopeful for some more good news this week, following a job interview with Chick-fil-A.

He hopes to eventually land work with a tree nursery. But needing to get on his feet and ready to take over rent payments, he’s open to working in fast food or retail.

Ramon said he didn’t allow his initial struggles and homelessness to discourage him.

“I knew there was a potential for something so much better than sticking to what I was comfortable with and what I knew at the time,” he said.

His advice to others in similar situations, he added, is to “just put yourself out there. Don’t be afraid to ask for help or to accept support.”

Latta said the program is the first the consortium has been able to offer all member institutions.

But while it’s still new, she’s already convinced of its value.

“You hear the stories and meet the individuals — see how their face lights up that there’s hope that they can go to college — it is amazing and so transformational,” she said. “It can change the trajectory of a person’s life.”

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