Opening Doors Across America
Opening Doors Across America has been endorsed by many leaders and national organizations focused on homelessness including the following:
100k HomesCommunity Solutions
Corporation for Supportive Housing
Funders Together
National Alliance to End Homelessness
National Coalition for Homeless Veterans
National Coalition for the Homeless
National Health Care for the Homeless Council
National Low Income Housing Coalition
The U.S. Conference of Mayors
In 2011, USICH launched Opening Doors Across America, an initiative with the goal of building on partnerships to accelerate progress to achieve the goals of Opening Doors. Opening Doors Across America is a call to action for states and communities but also for organizations, individuals, advocates, philanthropy and others. We need to work together to push the same goals forward to ensure money is spent wisely and an end to homelessness becomes a reality.
We are inviting states and communities across the country to formally join this national effort by taking four steps:
- Align your community plan with Opening Doors
- Set targets and measure results
- Act strategically
- Partner in the national efforts to end homelessness
If your community takes these 4 actions, you will become an Opening Doors Community. This will help your community achieve results and be recognized as a champion for your leadership in ending homelessness. This is something you can highlight as you seek to advance your goals by applying for local, state and federal programs. It will also connect you to a support network through where you can exchange ideas and practices with USICH and peers across the country who are facing the same challenges. Now is the time to collaborate and to invest in and act on strategies that are proven to make an impact.
Whether or not you are directly involved with your state or local government, there are many things you can do to encourage your community to join us and to help them achieve the status of an Opening Doors Community. Please read about ways you can get involved by clicking a link below.
USICH profiled communities across the country that are already demonstrating practices encouraged in Opening Doors Across America in line with four key steps noted above
Learn from Communities Leading the Way
We also developed a set of tools that will guide your community through the steps outlined in Opening Doors Across America and that will help you take effective strategic action to end homelessness locally.
Contact your local Regional Coordinator now to join us!
Download the Opening Doors Across America overview (pdf)
Download a one page summary of Opening Doors Across America (pdf)
We hosted a webinar on September 27th about Opening Doors Across America that featured successes in Salt Lake City, Utah; Hennepin County, Minnesota; and the State of Massachusetts.
State Resources
