DeKalb County Opens Its First Housing Program for Homeless Women

DeKalb County now has its first facility specifically dedicated to helping women experiencing homelessness.

The program is operated by Georgia Works in partnership with A Home For Everyone in DeKalb and the Oakhurst Center for Community. It brings Georgia Works' existing housing and employment model to women for the first time.

More Than a Place to Sleep

This isn't a traditional emergency shelter.

Women participating in the program receive housing while working toward employment, financial stability and eventually independent housing.

Georgia Works' model combines temporary housing with employment assistance, case management and other supportive services designed to address barriers that can make it difficult for someone experiencing homelessness to become self-sufficient.

The new program also fills a significant gap in DeKalb County. Before its opening, the county did not have a facility specifically dedicated to serving single women experiencing homelessness.

For women working to rebuild after homelessness, having a stable place to live while addressing employment and other barriers can provide something difficult to achieve while living without shelter: time and stability to prepare for what comes next.

Sources: WABE