Housing Kalamazoo Forum

Breakout Session 1

Session 1: Unlocking Housing Solutions: A Multi-Sector Approach to Kalamazoo’s Crisis

Room 2016/18, 2nd Floor 

The housing and homelessness crisis continues to impact Kalamazoo County - driving up costs, displacing residents, and straining local resources.  This session will bring together voices from the justice system, housing providers, local business community, and development sectors to examine the intersections of homelessness, housing scarcity, and economic pressures. The panel will explore both the systemic challenges and potential pathways toward inclusive, community-driven solutions to the housing crisis.

Panelists: Honorable Judge Alisa Parker-LaGrone, Marissa Harrington, Curt Ardema & Leandra Hill

Session 2:  Hope & Healing for Houseless Youth: Building Resiliency Through Youth Development

Room 2020, 2nd Floor

This interactive session will explore how youth development programming—grounded in healing-centered and resiliency-based strategies—can provide transformational support for houseless and housing-insecure youth. Drawing from the Community Resiliency Model (CRM) and the insights of Shawn Ginwright’s Healing Centered Engagement, we will explore how to create emotionally safe spaces, build identity and belonging, and nurture agency among youth experiencing housing instability. Participants will learn how to use practical, trauma-informed strategies that build resilience regardless of a young person's current life circumstances—emphasizing strengths over symptoms and aspiration over adversity.

Presenters: Abra Smith, Joy Parson, & Genesis Griffin

Session 3:  Street Medicine: The Intersection of Housing and Health

Room 1060, 1st Floor

What happens when someone with a chronic illness sleeps under a bridge? When a diabetic stores insulin in a tent? When someone with untreated psychosis is evicted from the last shelter bed? This interactive session explores the connection between housing and health through the work of Street Medicine Kalamazoo, a program delivering care directly to people sleeping rough. Using patient stories, local and national data, the session will discuss how housing instability fuels medical crises—and how untreated illness can derail housing stability.

Presenters: Sravani, Alluri, MD & EricaNoelle V. Destin, MSW

Plenary Session & Lunch

Opening Remarks:

• Patrese Griffin, Continuum of Care Director, United Way of South Central Michigan
• Chris Sargent, President & Executive Officer, United Way of South Central Michigan

Plenary Talk:

Housing Security and College Success: How Eviction Derails Parents in College and Ways to Change That Reality.

Rooms 1035-1055, 1st Floor

Based on collaborative work between Princeton Eviction Lab and New America’s Parenting Student Initiative, this session walks through why parenting students are such a critical population in higher education today, why housing security is vital to their success, and how lessons from parenting students can be applied to all students facing basic needs insecurity. We will explore who parenting students are as a group, what the data we have shows about how harmful eviction and housing insecurity is for parenting students’ success in college, and the cross-sector work needed to help change this narrative. Attendees will leave with new knowledge, ways to think about cross sector partnerships, and hopefully be inspired to work on local housing solutions to help parenting students succeed.

Plenary Speaker: Eddy Conroy, EdD

Breakout Session 2

Session 1:  Housing For All: Navigating the Crisis Through an Equity Lens

Room 1040/50, 1st Floor

The national and local housing and homelessness crisis continues to deepen - yet all communities are not impacted equally.  Subpopulations such as survivors of DV, formerly incarcerated individuals, seniors, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people and others face unique barriers to stable housing. At the same time, shifting federal policies and funding priorities are reshaping how agencies respond on the ground.

The session brings together leaders from orgs that work directly with these historically underserved groups to share how they are navigating the current federal landscape to ensure equitable access to housing for all.

Panelists: Christopher Terkos, MightyStream Anders, Treanna Martinez, Adrian Vazquez

Session 2: Every Person Counts: A Data-Driven Analysis of Homelessness in Kalamazoo County

Room 2016/18, 2nd Floor

This session offers a comprehensive look at homelessness in Kalamazoo County using multiple data sources to explore who becomes homeless and why. Attendees will gain insight into the scope of homelessness, key demographic trends, and the racial and systemic disparities that shape individual experiences. Local homelessness data will be contextualized through state and federal trends, with an emphasis on the systemic drivers of homelessness. The session will also examine the capacity of our homeless response system to address the growing issue of homelessness in Kalamazoo County. Participants will be invited to consider how we can advance collective, equity-focused, and data-driven solutions that reflect the diverse needs of unhoused community members – recognizing that there is no one-size-fits-all approach.

Presenter: Carrie Bosch, PhD, Robin Greymountain, Andy Figel

Session 3: Nothing About Us Without Us: Centering Lived Experience in Housing Justice in Kalamazoo County

Room 2020, 2nd Floor

In this session, we shift the narrative around homelessness in Kalamazoo County by centering the voices of those who have lived it.  Too often, conversations about housing insecurity exclude the insights of the very people most impacted.  This session invites attendees to listen deeply, reflect honestly, and engage meaningfully with individuals who have experienced homelessness in our community.

Panelists: Clisha Graves, Heaven Simpson, Ebony Roberson, Amber Pankey

Session 4: Disability Network Southwest Michigan: Supporting Transition from Homelessness

Room 1060, 1st Floor

People with disabilities often face unique challenges when transitioning out of homelessness. In this session, you will learn how Disability Network Southwest Michigan, a Center For Independent Living, uses it’s core services and the Independent Living Philosophy to support unhoused individuals in their transition.

Presenters: Sarah Stoll & Lisa Fuller

Session 5: Trauma Informed Pathways: Neurobiology, Service Delivery, and Healing Spaces in Service Delivery

Room 2030, 2nd floor

This workshop will explore how to implement trauma-informed care from placemaking to communication.  Participants will gain a foundational understanding of the neurobiology of trauma and the effect of trauma on behavior, engagement, and trust.  This workshop will examine how we can meet the unique needs of individuals with lived experiences of trauma and homelessness.  Finally, the session will highlight best practices in place-making and trauma-informed design- creating spaces that promote safety, dignity, and healing.  Through this integrated approach, attendees will learn strategies that help support resilience, connection, and long-term stability for those they serve.

Presenter: Sarah Rennie, JD

Breakout Session 3

Session 1: Coordinated Entry in Crisis: Rethinking Access and Effectiveness.

Room 1040/50, 1st Floor

The Coordinated Entry System was created as a central tool to connect people experiencing homelessness with available housing and services.  But is the system meeting the moment?

This session brings together a panel of leaders from the HARA, access point agencies, and experts in the field of CE to explore the current state of the CES - what's working, where gaps remain, and how the system must evolve to better serve those in need.

Panelists: Shanna Hill, Rosalind Adams, Maria Williams

Session 2: Innovating Home: Creative Solutions to Homelessness in Kalamazoo County

Room 2016/18, 2nd Floor

Kalamazoo County is facing the urgent challenge of homelessness with innovation, collaboration, and a commitment to reimagining what’s possible. This session will explore creative housing solutions that are not only being envisioned — but actively implemented — in our community.

Presenters: Anita Johnson, Willa DiTaranto, Tobi Hanna-Davies, Cathryn Phason

Session 3: Southwest Michigan Perspectives

Room 2020, 2nd Floor

The session will be split into 3 parts. It will start with an introduction to the Southwest Michigan Regional Housing Partnership whose objective is to build a connected, collaborative, and inclusive housing ecosystem tied to MSHDA’s Statewide Housing Plan. Then we will hear from Whitney Wardell the President and CEO of Neighborhood Inc on her work with landlords and reaching clients experiencing homelessness in Calhoun and St Joseph Counties. We will also get a sneak peek into NIBC’s new Path 2 Purchase program. Alison Harrop Director of United Christian Services will discuss the challenges faced as a service provider in Van Buren County and how their new Coffee Connections program has revolutionized their approach.

Presenters: Emily Petz, Whitney Wardell, Alison Harrop

Session 4: Shared Walls, Shared World: Lessons in Building Spaces that Work for People

Room 1060, 1st Floor

In this interactive 75-minute session, through the lens of a grassroots-run program — operated in partnership with unhoused guests themselves — we’ll explore how short-term shelter can spark lasting change. Immersive group challenges will invite participants to design shelter from the guest’s perspective, grapple with real-world constraints, and co-create the wraparound and supportive services that can turn a temporary stay into a stepping stone toward stability. Symbolic objects at each table will stir reflection on welcome, access, and fairness. Together, we’ll weave these insights into a bold vision for housing systems grounded in dignity, trust, and human connection — the steady hands and open doors that help people heal, rebuild, and belong.

Presenters: Judy Lowery & John Bueche

Awards & Closing Remarks

Closing Remarks

Jen Strebs, Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners Chair

Awards:
Frontline Champion Award
Honors a dedicated frontline worker who consistently goes above and beyond to support
individuals experiencing housing instability.
2025 Recipient: Bill Brown

Housing Advocacy Award
Celebrates someone who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in advocating for
equitable housing policies, resources, or systemic change.
2025 Recipient: Sarah Cain

Outstanding Youth Advocate
Recognizes an individual who has made a meaningful impact in supporting youth
experiencing or at risk of homelessness through mentorship, service, or advocacy.
2025 Recipient: Brandon Mion

Groundbreaker Award
Honors a changemaker who is driving innovative, community-rooted solutions to housing
challenges and advancing equity from the ground up.
2025 Recipient: Judy Lowery

Community Impact Award
Recognizes an individual whose efforts have significantly improved housing outcomes and
quality of life for individuals or families in the Kalamazoo community.
2025 Recipient: Anita Johnson

Final Remarks:
Lisa Garcia, Assistance Vice President for External Partnerships, Western Michigan University