The role of housing in the transition process of youth and young adults: a twenty-year perspective

Lighthouse Youth Services in Cincinnati, Ohio, began placing foster youth, ages sixteen to eighteen, in individual apartments and other living arrangements in 1981 as a way of preparing them for life after foster care. The program has assisted over thirteen hundred youth and their children using scattered-site apartments, shared homes, roommate situations, host homes, and subsidized housing. The agency works with referring agencies to develop a transition plan one youth at a time and allows youth to move along a continuum of housing options depending on their level of functioning and behavior. Aftercare services assist youth for years after they leave custody. This chapter includes some case studies and summarizes the author's observations from running the program for the past twenty years.