homeless

Since 2012, homelessness in Houston has decreased more than 60%. As Kansas City continues its own efforts, the woman who developed Houston's strategy will speak at the Kansas City Public Library next week.

During March and April this year, Kansas City will work with four area shelters to extend the city's Zero KC emergency cold-weather plan to last the entire year. The new policy eases restrictions for people who've been kept out of shelters because of mental health, addiction or other issues — and adds additional beds.

The city of Lenexa will now allow Project 1020 to accept up to 50 people per night. The organization said it's been “overwhelmed” by demand for shelter and had to turn away people during Kansas City's recent winter storms.

Each year, volunteers venture out nationwide on a single night for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s point-in-time count in an effort to tally the country’s homeless population. Rural volunteers say they rely on the count to aid their unhoused populations. Meanwhile, experts say HUD may be undercounting.

Persistent cold this month has meant more unhoused people in the Kansas City area have needed warm, safe places to spend the night. But neither Johnson or Wyandotte counties have enough beds, and consistently have to turn people away.

A Wellness Court opened this month within Kansas City's Municipal Court, replacing the separate mental health and drug courts. The new approach offers a unique focus on co-occurring issues and lowers the barriers for people to get help.

As sleet and snow began falling, volunteers at Project 1020, Johnson County’s only emergency cold-weather shelter, made sure unhoused residents weren’t caught in the life-threatening cold. Unlike other county organizations, the shelter operated around the clock for several days straight.

In our series “Unhoused/Unschooled,” The Midwest Newsroom and its regional partners explored the complicated federal system designed to support K-12 public school students experiencing homelessness, particularly in rural communities.

Urban and suburban school districts may have a funding and staffing edge when it comes to implementing laws to support students with unstable housing. But, homeless education liaisons in small rural districts say close-knit communities make for efficient identification and support for students eligible for services.

Kansas City made a concerted effort to support unhoused individuals in the first major winter storm of 2025, Mayor Quinton Lucas said in an interview with Up To Date. But the mayor admitted the city isn't where it should be in its housing policies — including in building a low-barrier shelter.

The winter break is an opportunity for students to catch up with family and celebrate the holidays, but it can also cut off vulnerable kids’ access to resources they usually get at school.

Through reporting in Iowa, Nebraska and other states, The Midwest Newsroom has found a pattern of rural school districts relying on nonprofit organizations and community members to provide support and services where federal funding fails to meet needs.