Texarkana Homeless
Coalition

The Texarkana Homeless Coalition works to end homelessness in their community. The coalition is working towards heightened awareness and to develop a community-wide commitment to the needs and issues of those experiencing homelessness.

What factors are essential for effective cross-sector alignment?

Shared Purpose

  • In 2010, the coalition committed itself to developing and implementing a five-year action plan to end homelessness in Texarkana through prevention, interim housing, and permanent housing or services as needed.
  • The coalition is a member of HUD’s Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care program, requiring that their goals align with the Continuum of Care’s (CoC) goals and revolve around preventing and ending homelessness.

Governance

  • The Texas Homeless Network serves as the lead support agency for the Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care (CoC).
  • The Coalition has a board with committees that oversee planning activities on a local level.
  • Based on their 2010 Action Plan, coalition members are nominated as implementers for specific strategies and have defined roles based on these objectives.
  • Governance is harder because there are two states involved in the coalition (Texas and Arkansas); sometimes there are differences in laws or policies.

Data

  • As a member of the Texas CoC program and a HUD grant recipient, the coalition is required to use the CoC’s Homeless Management Information System.
  • The Texas Homeless Network monitors and maintains database and provides technical assistance.
  • There is no centralized collection of data for the coalition, but individual organizations track data and share it at the monthly meetings.
  • The coalition also completes yearly Point-in-Time Counts and housing inventory updates.

Finance and Sustainability

  • The coalition received its last CoC program grant in 2018 to support their transitional housing program. The city of Texarkana receives a yearly Community Development Block CV1 Grant.
  • The coalition is not yet a 501(c)(3) so all participating organizations operate with their own funding (mostly public funds).
  • The interstate aspect of the coalition makes funding challenging because public funds have many restrictions (e.g.,: can only be spent in TX).
  • The coalition also hosts the Bridge City Annual Fundraiser and accepts financial donations to support various programs.

Integration of Health Equity

  • Does not define or measure health equity as an explicit goal
  • Focuses initiatives on equity

Community Trust and Accountability

  • Strives to be transparent about progress and what is needed in their community
  • Uses a framework from the Texarkana Homeless Network to develop policies, which are updated annually

Measures of Success

  • Happen by agency
  • Homeless consensus: change in the number of housing insecure people, demographics of people, and time spent homeless
  • Whether individual organizations used all their funds