Luz Gonzalez
Soc. 109
April 25, 2009
Problems and Solutions: Homeless Children
In this research paper, I will emphasize a particular population sub-group,
homeless single parents and children. The U.S. economic crisis has put a lot
of families out of jobs, and made it difficult to find jobs. In most circumstances
the families are forced into homelessness due to the high-priced rent in Santa
Barbara. So the majority of children who are homeless are squeezed into unhealthy
living conditions such as living in motels, shelters, cars, and in some cases
on the streets. There are several non-profit organizations that have established
programs to help families transition out of homelessness. For example an organization
called Storyteller in Santa Barbara is a child center that focuses on homeless
children from single parent families. These are children
who come from drug abuse and domestic violent backgrounds.
In this week's
Santa Barbara Independent, there was an article called "Storyteller:Caring
for our Community's Children Campaign for The Future." It was said that
70 percent of homeless children come from single-parent households. This is
a very high percentage for a city that is always looked upon as being very affluent
as well as a city that is called "Paradise." But the reality is that
Santa Barbara is like every other city that has problems and needs solutions
to address these major social problems.
The issue of homelessness with single parents and children has increased over
the last twenty years. There are programs trying to address this issue, such
as the program called Storyteller. The program services include a free high-quality
early childhood education; children receive nutritious meals, medical screenings,
counseling, and therapy if they suffer from developmental delays. Parent education
classes are offered as well in a welcoming stable, nurturing environment with
committed teachers, counselors, and staff who provide support and care for these
children. The program creates a world of hope with organizations like Storyteller
and Transition House that give back to helpless unfortunate homeless families
and children in the Santa Barbara County.
In the textbook Social Problems, Thomas J. Sullivan describes three
different types of solutions to improve the poverty epidemic currently affecting
the United States. Sullivan states that the following prospects are a great
start to dealing with this growing social problem. Sullivan describes the functionalist
perspective: if people do not contribute to society, they're "punished"
by not receiving rewards involving wealth. If homeless individuals don't help
themselves in contributing to society by finding work and helping themselves,
they will stay at poverty level. In "Future Prospects," Sullivan talks
about encouraging and promoting full employment. For example, there is a nonprofit
organization in Los Angeles that provides individuals with the skills to find
work. Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles assists youth and adults just out of
the penal system. They train young people through the process of interviewing,
job skills, and
on the job, which promotes full-time employment, and the chance to improve one's
quality of life. In "Future Prospects," Sullivan talks about Early
Childhood Intervention programs that will assist a child's whole well-being.
A child's early preschool years are so important to enhance the child's language,
motor, perception and creative skills. By intervening on behalf of these poor
children, programs such as Head Start enable children living in poverty to have
the same economic opportunities as any other child in upper class families.
Lastly, Sullivan describes Income Maintenance Programs, such as Temporary Assistance
for Needy families (TANF). In addition, this program provides financial assistance
when a parent seeks work and attends school to improve their life circumstances.
In supporting this program it will assist single parents who want to move towards
a productive future for their family. After reviewing these
three "Future Prospects" solutions, I chose early childhood interventions
program to be the most promising in dealing with my particular social problem.
After choosing to address this particular social problem, I became motivated
to get involved as well. I'm planning to volunteer this summer at Storyteller
to help during activity time and to interact with children during free-time.
I feel children need more positive role models -someone they can relate to and
someone who shows an interest in them, and one who really cares. In this process
of getting involved in my social problem, I chose to have a kids' clothing drive.
First, I advertised by texted messages and made phone calls to my family and
friends informing them about the children's clothing drive. Second, I chose
a date and time to have clothing and items to be dropped off at my residence.
Third, I advertised by text messaging and leaving off a drop off point near
my
house where friends and family could leave their items. Lastly, I collected
all the bags of children's clothing and gave them to my aunt, who was going
to Tijuana on April 17, 2009. Every year my aunt goes to a children's orphanage
in Tijuana where she distributes clothing and goods to families and children
in need. Since this clothing drive was a success I'm planning to organize another
children's clothing drive in Santa Barbara and distribute the goods to Storyteller
and Transition House.
I also wanted to include why I chose this topic. I am a single-parent. Although
I haven't been in a homeless situation, I have friends of mine who are or have
been homeless.
I currently work at the Community Academy Elementary School as a teacher's aide
and I have a few of my students who are homeless as well. I've always had compassion
for children in poverty. When I was in high school, I sponsored a child through
Children's International. The child's name was Richard from Ecuador. It was
a great three year experience in making a difference in a child's life. This
experience was meaningful one in which I will never forget. In addition, I also
volunteered, for one year at The Big Brother/Big Sister agency. I was a big
sister to a young girl named Perla, who came from a single-parent family, who
had two brothers and one sister. Perla needed a lot of guidance since her mother
wasn't able to spend time or give her children one-on-one attention. It gave
me an opportunity to be a friend, a role model, motivate, and encourage her
to succeed in school. In the process of becoming a mentor it saddened me to
see that most volunteers were older women, with the exception of myself and
another young woman that year. These children really need mentors and positive
role models to look up to. More men need to get involved, and be mentors. There
are so many young boys who don't have that male role model to look up to.
In conclusion there are ways that people can get involved in the problem of
homelessness which primarily affects children. If we are to have a better society
for the future we can contribute in many ways, such as volunteering at non-profit
organizations. In addition, there's a high need for mentors at the junior high
schools as well as the elementary schools. These young children and teens are
our future generation, so people need to get out of their comfort zone and be
involved. The special skills that a mentor needs are to have his or her heart
in the right place and to enjoy communicating and giving positive feedback.
In connecting with these children, a mentor can give them a sense of hope. It's
a gift to have someone believe in you, and the student and the mentor
carry that memory throughout their lives and pass the light of hope to someone
else.