CINCINNATI — The number of homeless college students in Cincinnati is on the rise.
UC professor Holly McGee told city leaders on Tuesday that she works with students on a regular basis who are dealing with housing insecurity. She said it’s inspired her to speak out and be a voice for those students.
“I lost a favorite student of mine back in 2018 to homelessness and through the process of trying to help her negotiate the system at the University of Cincinnati, I saw the pitfalls,” she said. “I saw where the voids and the gaps are.”
McGee presented to council members a plan she's calling "Pathway to Success, The Homeless Student Housing Initiative" to help fill some of those gaps.
When it comes to student homelessness, McGee said many colleges do not keep track of the data. Instead, they use federal data and self-reported information.
“So at places like Cincinnati State, University of Cincinnati and Xavier, if they don't have an office that's already set up that is specifically tracking student homelessness, housing insecurity, then those numbers you have to rely on the federal data and then just draw aggregates from there based on what we know about student homelessness and student homelessness patterns,” McGee said.
McGee said stats show that 11% of students at UC and 12% of students at Xavier are dealing with homelessness or housing insecurity. At Cincinnati State, 25 to 30% of students are experiencing housing insecurity or are homeless.
Cincinnati State provided WCPO with the following statement:
“Homelessness surveys are typically based on self-reported data and can differ depending on how homelessness is defined. An analysis of 8,000 applications for federal financial aid at Cincinnati State this year showed that less than one-half percent of students identified themselves as homeless or at risk of being homeless. Another survey from two years ago found that 5 percent of students identified themselves as homeless at some point in the previous 12 months. Regardless of the number, Cincinnati State is very concerned about any student experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity, and offers them services including referrals, counseling, and a food bank, with the goal of helping them complete college and secure employment in a well-paid job.”
“Certainly, the student homelessness issue is a big one,” council member Jeff Cramerding said. “With several universities and the University of Cincinnati growing very quickly — which is a good thing, but we also need to realize there are ramifications and as UC grows, we need to partner with them in the housing front, transportation front, and the many different aspects of that growth.”
Student housing must keep up. McGee said there are some resources already available for students at UC, like 24-hour emergency housing.
“What we need are more short- and long-term solutions because 24 hours just isn’t enough,” McGee said.
McGee is asking for funding from the city to help create a task force to address the issue.
“One of the short-term solutions is $1.5 million for a two-year pilot project that will allow me to service somewhere between 4 to 5,000 students,” McGee said. “This pilot project could lead to something that's scalable, not just for the City of Cincinnati … The City of Cincinnati could become a national model for how we deal with student homelessness.”
The plan is to create an advisory committee with representatives from UC, Xavier and Cincinnati State.
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