The youth homelessness demonstration program (yhdp) aims to support selected communities in developing and implementing a coordinated community approach to preventing and ending youth homelessness

The Department of Housing and Urban Development's Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development awarded Ignite ORG $2,126,044 on April 1, 2026, under the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (CFDA 14.276) to support a coordinated community approach to preventing and ending youth homelessness in Chicago, Illinois.

The award funds eleven categories of eligible assistance: acquisition, rehabilitation, and new construction of real property for housing or supportive services; leasing of structures; short-term, medium-term, and long-term rental assistance in tenant-based, project-based, or sponsor-based formats for transitional or permanent housing; supportive services to help participants obtain and maintain housing; operating costs of supportive housing; homeless management information system implementation and operations; program administrative costs; and relocation costs. Ignite ORG's Teen Living Programs Division, a registered nonprofit based in Chicago, serves unaccompanied, pregnant, and parenting youth ages 24 and younger experiencing homelessness across the metropolitan area.

The period of performance runs from April 1, 2026, through September 30, 2028. The program targets seven primary objectives: preventing and ending youth homelessness, building national momentum, promoting equity in delivery and outcomes of homeless assistance, highlighting youth leadership, evaluating the coordinated community approach, expanding capacity, and evaluating performance measures.

Activities

Eleven types of assistance may be provided through the yhdp: 1. Acquisition of real property (including structures) for use in the provision of housing or supportive services; 2. Rehabilitation of structures to provide housing or supportive services; 3. New construction, including the building of a new structure or building an addition to an existing structure for use as supportive housing; 4. Leasing of a new structure or structures, or portions thereof, to provide housing or supportive services; 5. Rental assistance, which may be short-term, medium-term, or long-term, as well as tenant-based, project-based, or sponsor-based, for transitional or permanent housing; 6. Supportive services to assist program participants obtain and maintain housing; 7. Operating costs of supportive housing; 8. Costs of implementing and operating homeless management information system (hmis); 9. Program administrative costs; 10. Relocation costs; and 11. Indirect costs in accordance with 2 CFR part 200, as applicable. No assistance provided under this program (or any state or local government funds used to supplement this assistance) may be used to replace state or local funds previously used, or designated for use, to assist homeless persons or persons at-risk of homelessness.

Expected outcomes

As a result of developing and implementing a coordinated community approach to preventing and ending youth homelessness, there will be: • significant decrease in the number of youth experiencing homelessness. • increased income, education, health, and social/emotional well-being of participants. • community-level understanding of the number and needs of youth at-risk of and experiencing homelessness. • new or improved partnerships between youth-serving organizations in the community.

Intended beneficiaries

Homeless unaccompanied youth (age 24 and younger) and homeless youth (age 24 and younger) with children.

Subrecipient activities

The subrecipient activities are unknown at the time of award.