YOUTH ACTION GUIDE
The Homestretch Youth Action Guide is a collection of discussion questions, resources, and activities that will guide and empower you throughout the process of addressing the challenge of youth homelessness. The guide is designed to help you put your ideas into action, so scribble down notes, have discussions with others, and document your journey along the way. Whether you are an individual who feels called to action around the issue of youth homelessness or you are part of a school – or community-based organization, this guide will equip you with the tools you need to be an agent of change.

How are youth answering our Call to Action?

Student Leadership Responds in Albuquerque
After screening The Homestretch, student leadership from dozens of Albuquerque high schools came together to talk openly about the challenges facing fellow students who are experiencing unstable housing conditions. Then they split into small groups and brainstormed actions and solutions they could bring back to their own schools.  Actions ranged from programs to collect supplies and provide food to innovative peer awareness programs designed to challenge the harmful negative stereotypes that surround homelessness and encourage youth to speak out and speak up for each other. Read more...

Saugatuck High School Highlights Rural Homelessness
We were absolutely blown away to see this short film that a group of young people created in response to a community screening of The Homestretch in Saugatuck, Michigan. Whitney Valentine, Education and Exhibit Coordinator for the Saugatuck Center for the Arts partnered with students of “The Justice Team” and their Social Studies Teacher, John Green, to create a very personal response to the issue of homeless youth in their own community. Working with local service organizations, this dynamic team made their own film about rural youth homelessness in order to build awareness and support.

Emory University Watches, Discusses, and Reflects
The Homeless Outreach and Awareness Project, a student group at Emory University, screened The Homestretch in October. Their event was accompanied by discussion and reflection, including a written piece by junior Tracy Li. "Youth is the time where we start to establish who we are and who we are going to be in the future, it is pertinent to give these youth experiencing homelessness the resources and opportunities to make their lives better." Click here to read Tracy's reflection in full, and to learn more about the Homeless Outreach and Awareness Project's mission.

Global Girls Media Attend The Homestretch
In March, ITVS Community Cinema hosted a screening of The Homestretch at the Chicago Cultural Center. Global Girls Media, a nonprofit "dedicated to empowering high school age girls" through media production, attended the event and filmed interviews with stakeholders. The five minute piece they put together does an amazing job exploring issues covered in The Homestretch, and shows how the film is changing perspectives around the issue of youth homelessness. 

Williams Prep School of Medicine at Dusable
As the 2015 school year came to a close, students from Williams Prep watched The Homestretch before taking on service projects in their community. Some students made sleeping mats out of recycled materials, mats that will be given to individuals who are unstably housed. "There are students at our school that have temporary living situations on file and yet their own classmates don't even know that this is going on in our city," said teacher and service organizer Chris Van Dyken. The Homestretch raised their awareness, and provided motivation to serve their community.

Walter Payton High School
One of the most powerful impacts that The Homestretch is having is that young people are stepping up to serve their peers. Take Olivia and her classmates at Walter Payton College Prep, for example. After seeing The Homestretch, they adopted a sister elementary school in their neighborhood and volunteered their time as after school tutors. 

There are so many ways young people are taking action. Email homestretch@kartemquin.com to tell us how you've answered the call.