Front Steps is the leading fiscal and programmatic agency of Keep Austin Housed (KAH), a collaborative of ten nonprofit agencies in Austin that provides services to a broad range of homeless subpopulations. These subpopulations include:
- families with children,
- people with mental health and substance abuse issues,
- domestic violence survivors,
- adults with disabilities,
- veterans,
- immigrants,
- unaccompanied minors,
- the elderly, and
- chronically homeless individuals.
The collaborative assists people experiencing homelessness to achieve and maintain permanent housing and employment while developing self-sufficiencies. AmeriCorps members provide case management services to clients to intervene in and make a significant, measurable impact on homelessness in Austin.
Study Goals:
The purpose of the evaluation was to build upon findings from previous evaluations and determine the extent to which KAH is fulfilling its proposed goals.
Research Questions:
The evaluation includes both process and non-experimental outcome questions. The research questions include:
- Process:
- To what extent do members perform service activities with clients using the same core components of case management across all ten service sites?
- To what extent do members perform the same core activities across all ten service sites?
- Do clients demonstrate gains in housing and employment while interacting with members?
- To what extent do clients achieve goals beyond obtaining housing and employment while interacting with members?
- Non-Experimental Outcome:
- To what extent do clients demonstrate greater awareness of community social services resources after interactions with members during the service term?
- Do clients believe their self-efficacy increases, as a result of interactions with members during the service term?
- Do clients perceive that their confidence in advocating for themselves increases as a result of interactions with members during the service term?
- Do clients perceive their interactions with KAH Case Management Aides to be positive and productive?
Findings:
The evaluation found the following:
- Across both terms of service, members engaged in activities within the scope of their position description and are providing supportive case management aide services for people with significant barriers that may contribute to homelessness.
- Limitations arose in some aspects of the evaluation due to limited KAH staff capacity, and due to members not completing certain tasks, e.g. missing a round of the quarterly survey.
- Nearly 100% of members and their supervisors reported that members are performing service activities using the same core components of case management
- Nearly 100% of members and their supervisors reported that members are performing the same core activities across all ten service sites.
- For both terms of service, performance measures were met or almost met. KAH staff attributes goals that were not met to low recruitment numbers.
- Answers provided in the quarterly survey showed a range of services provided beyond housing and employment. For example, members noted helping clients receive benefits, e.g. disability and SNAP, helping parents with CPS cases, and helping chronically ill clients manage their health.
For more information, download the full report.
Full report
Full Report
Further information
Program/Intervention
Keep Austin Housed AmeriCorps Program
Implementing Organization
Front Steps
Intermediary(s)
Front Steps
AmeriCorps Program(s)
AmeriCorps State and National
Age(s) Studied
18-25 (Young adult)
26-55 (Adult)
55+ (Older adult)
Focus Population(s)/Community(s)
Urban
Outcome Category
Housing
Study Type(s)
Implementation
Outcomes
Study Design(s)
Non-Experimental
Level of Evidence
Moderate
Researcher/Evaluator
Keep Austin Housed (KAH)
Study Site Location (State)
Texas