Runaway and Homeless Youth Training, Technical Assistance, and Capacity Building Center (RHYTTAC) National Needs Assessment - 2025

Runaway and Homeless Youth Program

2025 National Needs Assessment

The Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) and the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training, Technical Assistance, and Capacity Building Center (RHYTTAC) have developed the National Needs Assessment to gather feedback from Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) grant recipients. The goal of this survey is to learn how to better support the development and delivery of training and technical assistance (T/TA) that is responsive to the needs of grantees operating various RHY-funded programs. Your feedback is valuable in accomplishing this goal. This assessment is voluntary and takes roughly 30 minutes to complete. The information provided will be kept private and will not be used to make funding decisions, or other grantee-specific decisions. RHYTTAC synthesizes the findings and produces a report and infographic for FYSB to identify priorities for RHYTTAC T/TA for the following year.

Instructions for Completing the Assessment

This survey is structured to gather organization-level feedback. We encourage organizations to designate a representative to coordinate discussion and gather feedback internally on your organization’s preferences and training and technical assistance needs and submit one survey on behalf of your organization. Please contact Dr. Amanda Griffin, agriffin@chapinhall.org, with any other questions about the survey.

Please complete the survey below. Thank you!

THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT OF 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13). Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 30 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The control number is 0970-0531. The control number expires on September 30, 2025.

Section 1. Background

BAC_1 Please provide the name of your organization. 100 character limit.

BAC_2 Please select your state or territory (drop down list of 50 states and 5 territories)

Grant_num Please provide your FYSB RHY grant number(s) for each project.

BAC_3 Which answer best describes the community(ies) served by your RHY program(s)? Please select one.

1. Rural

2. Urban/suburban

3. Primarily rural with urban/suburban area access

4. Primarily urban/suburban with rural service locations

5. Tribal Community, Tribal Nation, etc.

BAC_4 Which of the following FYSB-funded RHY grants does your organization currently have? Select all that apply.

1. Street Outreach Program (SOP)

2. Basic Center Program (BCP)

3. Transitional Living Program (TLP)

4. Maternity Group Home (MGH)

5. RHY Prevention Demonstration Project (RHY-PDP)

BAC_5 Which category best describes the number of runaway and homeless youth served directly by your FYSB-funded RHY program(s) each year?

Please include only youth who are served with FYSB funding. If you operate more than one program, please provide the total number of youths served by all programs funded by FYSB.

1. Fewer than 25

2. 25 to 49

3. 50 to 99

4. 100 to 199

5. 200 or more

BAC_6 Which of the following types of non-FYSB funded programs does your organization provide for runaway and homeless youth (those funded through other sources)? Select all that apply.

1. Basic Center (or other short-term crisis shelter)

2. Drop-in Center

3. Host Homes

4. Maternity Group Home

5. Permanent Supportive Housing

6. Rapid Rehousing

7. Street Outreach

8. Transitional Living or Independent Living

9. YHDP (Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program)

10. None
    
    

BAC_7 Do your organization’s responses to this survey include direct inputs from executive leadership staff, direct program/practitioner staff, or both?

1. Executive leadership staff

2. Direct program/practitioner staff

3. Both executive leadership and direct program/practitioner staff

Section 2. RHYTTAC Utilization & Experiences

RUT_1a-h To the best of your knowledge, have you or others in your organization used each of the following types of RHYTTAC training and technical assistance (TTA) in the last 12 months?

	No (0)	Yes (1)
Group Training and TA
Regional Breakout Session held in person at the National Training (Dec 2024)
TA Café
Webinar or Virtual Training
Regional Training (held virtually spring 2025)
Individual Training or TA
Call, video conference, or e-mail consultation
In-person TTA
eLearning (self-directed learning on website)/Website Resources
Support for Corrective Action Plans following monitoring

RUT_2a-h Please indicate the usefulness of each type of RHYTTAC training or technical assistance used by you or your organization. Response options will populate based on answers to the previous question.

	Not useful (1)	Somewhat useful (2)	Very useful (3)	N/A (99)
Group Training and TA
Regional Breakout Session held in person at the National Training (Dec 2024)
TA Café
Regional Training (held virtually spring 2025)
Webinar or Virtual Training
Call, video conference, or e-mail consultation
In-person TTA
eLearning (self-directed learning on website)/Website Resources
Support for Corrective Action Plans following monitoring

RUT_3 Please select the option that best reflects your level of agreement with this statement: In the last 12 months, knowledge, resources, and/or tips received from RHYTTAC training or technical assistance services have helped my organization to improve outcomes for youth/young adults.

1. Strongly disagree

2. Disagree

3. Neutral

4. Agree

5. Strongly agree

99 Don’t know

RUT_4 (Only show if Yes to any event type in RUT_1a-h) If your organization did not use RHYTTAC services (i.e., training or technical assistance) in the last 12 months, please indicate the reason(s) why. Select all that apply.

1. Too busy or not enough time.

2. It is difficult to find staff coverage to support participation in training and technical assistance activities.

3. Unaware of the RHYTTAC services available.

4. Did not know how to access RHYTTAC services.

5. Did not find content that fits training needs.

6. Concerns about the quality of RHYTTAC services.

7. Used other (non-RHYTTAC) sources of training and technical assistance to meet needs.

8. Other (please specify) (If RUT_4=Other, RUT_5 appears)

9. N/A

RUT_5 Please list other reason(s) your organization did not use RHYTTAC services in the last 12 months.

RUT_6 Does your program provide services to RHY in languages other than English?

1 Yes

2 No

3 Don’t know

4 Prefer not to answer

(If Yes, go to RUT_7; If No, go to RUT_9)

RUT_7 Please select the language(s) in which your program provides services to RHY. Select all that apply.

1. Spanish

2. Chinese (Mandarin)

3. Chinese (Cantonese)

4. Tagalog (Filipino)

5. Vietnamese

6. French and/or French Creole

7. Arabic

8. Other (If RUT_7=Other, go to RUT_8; otherwise go to RUT_9)

RUT_8 What other language(s) does your organization provide services to RHY?

RUT_9 Would your program use RHYTTAC resources translated in a language other than English?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t know

4. Prefer not to answer

(If Yes or Don’t know, go to RUT_10; If No, or Prefer not to answer, go to MON_1)

RUT_10 Please select the language(s) you would prioritize for RHYTTAC translated resources. Select all that apply. (Only shown if RUT_9=Yes or Don’t Know)

1. Spanish

2. Chinese (Mandarin)

3. Chinese (Cantonese)

4. Tagalog (Filipino)

5. Vietnamese

6. French and/or French Creole

7. Arabic

8. None

9. Other (If RUT_10=Other, go to RUT_11; otherwise go to RUT_12)

RUT_11 What other language(s) would you prioritize for RHYTTAC translated resources? (Only shown if RUT_10=Other)

RUT_12 What type of resources would your program use if they were translated in your previously selected languages? (Only shown if RUT_9=Yes or Don’t Know)

1. Virtual training recordings

2. Live presentations

3. PowerPoint Slides

4. Tip Sheets/Fact Sheets

5. Reports or Briefs

6. Emails

7. None of the above

8. Other (If RUT_12 = other, go to RUT_13; otherwise go to MON_1)

RUT_13 What other types of resources would you prioritize for RHYTTAC translated resources? (Only shown if RUT_12=Other)

Section 3. FYSB Monitoring

MON_1 Within your grant’s project period (up to 3 years), have you had a monitoring visit for one of more of your FYSB-funded RHY grants?

1. Yes
2. No

MON_2 What technical assistance would be helpful in preparing for monitoring visits? Please select all that apply.

1. Knowing what to expect for the monitoring visit

2. Knowing how to prepare for the monitoring visit

3. Understanding Corrective Action Plans

4. Creating responses to Corrective Action Plans

5. Other (please specify) (If MON_2=Other, MON_3 appears)

MON_3 Please list what other technical assistance would be helpful in preparing for monitoring visits.

Section 4. Training Need Priorities

This next section asks about what topics your organization would like to prioritize for RHYTTAC TTA across several different domains.

TND_1a What is the one training topic around which representatives of your organization would participate in TTA or an ongoing TTA series? Please briefly just name or list the topic.

TND_1 Please select which training topic(s) your organization believes RHYTTAC should prioritize to support your organization’s leadership and operations’ needs. Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event. Select all that apply.

1. Access to support for Medicaid, SSI disability, and identification (including REAL ID)

2. Advocacy and public policy

3. Background checks

4. Board development

5. Collaborating with other systems

6. Contract management

7. Data-driven decision making

8. Disaster or pandemic preparedness and response (including for COVID-19 or other public health crises, natural disasters, etc.)

9. Engaging community support

10. Fiscal management

11. Hiring youth in staff roles

12. HUD systems and Continuums of Care (CoCs)

13. Leading in partnership with youth with lived expertise

14. Program monitoring and evaluation

15. Program management

16. RHY-HMIS (Runaway and Homeless Youth – Homeless Management Information System) Repository/Data Standards

17. RHY-HMIS (Runaway and Homeless Youth – Homeless Management Information System) Dashboard

18. RHY-HMIS Project set up

19. Staff mental health and well-being

20. Staff recruitment

21. Staff retention, training, and development

22. Staff safety

23. Succession planning

24. Sustainability of RHY Programs

25. Volunteer recruitment/management

26. Youth engagement

27. Youth outcomes measurement

28. Other (specify) (If TND_1=Other, TND_2 appears)

TND_2 Please identify the other training topic(s).

TND_12 What cross-cutting training and technical assistance topic(s) would most help your organization improve young people’s outcomes?

Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event. Select all that apply.

1. Accessing public benefits/government programs (e.g., Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), cash assistance, REAL ID etc.)

2. Aftercare (post-program exit) services or counseling

3. Collaborating with law enforcement or juvenile/criminal justice systems

4. Collaborating with child welfare systems

5. Collaborating with behavioral health systems

6. Confidentiality policies and protocols

7. Conducting screening/assessment – best practices

8. Direct financial assistance to youth (i.e., Cash Transfers)

9. Gangs and gang-involved youth

10. Human trafficking and exploitation

11. Motivational Interviewing

12. Needs of children born to young adults experiencing homelessness

13. Needs of youth transitioning out of foster care

14. Outreach to youth

15. Public Health and/or Community Emergency preparedness (including COVID-19)

16. Positive Youth Development (PYD)

17. Pregnant/parenting youth needs

18. Prevention programs/practices (preventing youth homelessness/running away from occurring in the first place)

19. RHY-HMIS (program set up, data entry, data extraction)

20. Staff burn-out, compassion fatigue, and vicarious trauma

21. Unaccompanied minors issues (legal, services, etc.)

22. Using or finding evidence-based/evidence-informed programs/practices

23. Youth collaboration, leadership, and engagement

24. Other (please specify) (If TND_12= Other, TND_13 appears)

TND_13 Please specify other training topics that would be helpful to your organization.

Section 5. Training Needs: Outcome Areas

The next section asks you about training needs related to each of FYSB’s four core outcome areas for youth experiencing homelessness. We ask you to select the Top 3 training topic priorities in each domain.

OUT_1 What training and technical assistance topic(s) would most help your organization improve young people’s safe and stable housing outcomes? Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event. Select your top 3.

1. Aftercare (post-program exit) services or counseling

2. Assessing housing/homelessness needs

3. Collaborating with Continuums of Care

4. Collaborating with Housing Authorities

5. Coordinated assessments and coordinated entry systems

6. Crisis intervention techniques

7. Family strengthening, mediation, or counseling for housing stability

8. Federally funded housing resources/programs for youth (non-FYSB resources)

9. Host Homes or natural supports for housing stability

10. “Housing First” approaches for youth

11. Housing navigation

12. Landlord engagement

13. Low Barrier Services

14. Measuring youth’s safe and stable housing outcomes

15. Outreach to youth

16. Prevention programs/practices (preventing youth homelessness/running away from occurring in the first place)

17. Rental assistance with services/rapid rehousing

18. Shelter-to-housing transition supports (from BCP/TLP/MGH)

19. Transitional Living Program/Maternity Group Home retention

20. Other (please specify) (If OUT_1=Other, OUT_2 appears)

OUT_2 Please specify other training topic(s) that would be helpful to your organization.

OUT_3 What training and technical assistance topic(s) would most help your organization improve young people’s education or employment outcomes? Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event. Select your top 3.

1. Assessing education, training, or employment needs

2. Collaborating with secondary schools or McKinney-Vento liaison to support youth while in middle or high school

3. Collaborating with post-secondary education or supporting youth while in post-secondary education

4. Coordinating with local workforce development agencies

5. Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) Program (federal law and resources)

6. Measuring youth’s education or employment outcomes

7. Post-secondary financial aid for youth (e.g., assisting with FAFSA application) or post-secondary education housing support

8. Understanding effective youth employment/career pathways programs/practices

9. Other (please specify) (If OUT_3=Other, OUT_4 appears)

OUT_4 Please specify other training topics that would be helpful to your organization.

OUT_5 What training and technical assistance topic(s) would most help your organization improve young people’s permanent connections outcomes? Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event. Select your top 3.

1. Assessing permanent connections needs

2. Building partnerships with other community-based groups or organizations

3. Case management

4. Facilitating social networks for youth advancement (to community resources, career opportunities, etc.)

5. Family strengthening/counseling

6. Identifying and leveraging natural supports

7. Measuring youth’s permanent connections’ outcomes

8. Mentoring for youth

9. Peer supports or peer support program models

10. Staff-youth positive relationship building

11. Using virtual platforms/social media for positive connections

12. Other (please specify)

(If OUT_5=Other, OUT_6 appears)

OUT_6 Please specify other training topics that would be helpful to your organization.

OUT_7 What training and technical assistance topic(s) would most help your organization improve young people’s social and emotional wellbeing outcomes? Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event. Select your top 3.

1. Assessing or screening social-emotional wellbeing needs

2. Coping strategies, self-regulation, or co-regulation for youth

3. Harm reduction

4. Mental health programs/practices

5. Peer supports or peer support program models

6. Physical health screening and assessment

7. Physical health interventions/practices

8. Sexual and reproductive health

9. Substance use disorder programs/practices

10. Suicide prevention

11. Trauma and the effects of trauma on youth

12. Virtual programming/counseling for youth well-being

13. Youth empowerment

14. Other (please specify)

(If OUT_7=Other, OUT_8 appears)

OUT_8 Please specify other training topics that would be helpful to your organization.

Section 6. Training Needs: Outcomes Measurement

tnd_14a-d Which response best describes your organization’s technical assistance needs for outcomes measurement in each of the following four core outcome areas that FYSB has prioritized for preventing and ending youth homelessness?

	We DON’T NEED technical assistance (i.e., we are satisfied with our measure(s)/ measurement practices for this outcome) (0)	We would like SOME technical assistance (i.e., we have measure(s)/ measurement practices that are okay for this outcome) (1)	We need A LOT of technical assistance (i.e., we struggle with identifying good measure(s)/ measurement practice(s) for this outcome) (2)
Outcomes measurement
tnd_14a Safe and stable housing
tnd_14b Education or employment
tnd_14c Permanent connections
tnd_14d Social and emotional well-being

tnd_15 If you received training or technical assistance outside of RHYTTAC that you think would be helpful for FYSB RHY grantees, please briefly list the topic of this training or technical assistance. If you remember, you can also list the name or organization of the presenter or technical assistance provider.

Section 7. Training Needs for System Collaboration

SYS_1 To what extent does your organization partner or collaborate with other systems?

	We DO NOT PARTNER or collaborate with: (0)	We have OCCASIONALLY PARTNER or collaborate with: (1)	We ROUTINELY PARTNER or collaborate with: (2)
SYS_1a Education/school-based services
SYS_1b Post-secondary education
SYS_1c Juvenile justice/corrections
SYS_1d Child welfare
SYS_1e Behavioral health (group counseling, addiction services, etc.)
SYS_1f Public benefit systems (food banks, Medicaid, WIC, TANF, etc.)
SYS_1g Medical health (nurse, doulas, referral to medical care, etc.)
SYS_1h Workforce development
SYS_1i Public Housing Agencies (PHA)
SYS_1j Early childhood (Head Start, home visiting, etc.)
SYS_1l HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC)
SYS_1k Other organizations or systems

SYS 2 Thinking about your organization’s needs over the coming year, how important would it be for RHYTTAC to provide training or technical assistance focused on collaborating with the following systems?

	Not important (0)	Somewhat important (1)	Important (2)	Very important (3)
SYS 2a Education/school-based services
SYS 2b Post-secondary education
SYS 2c Juvenile justice/corrections
SYS 2d Child welfare
SYS 2e Behavioral health (group counseling, addiction services, etc.)
SYS 2f Public benefit systems (food banks, Medicaid, WIC, TANF, etc.)
SYS 2g Medical health (nurse, doulas, referral to medical care, etc.)
SYS 2h Workforce development
SYS 2i Public Housing Agencies (PHA)
SYS 2j Early childhood (Head Start, home visiting, etc.)
SYS 2l HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC)
SYS_2k Other organizations or systems

SYS 3 What TTA topics would be most helpful to strengthen or build collaborations with other systems? Select all that apply.

1. Establishing referral pathways

2. Strengthening referral processes and protocols

3. Establishing practices and policies to facilitate connections between systems (e.g., warm handoffs)

4. Information and data sharing across systems

5. Staff training needs to support cross-sector collaboration

6. Collaborating to identify youth at risk of experiencing homelessness

7. Strengthening cross-systems partnerships for preventing youth homelessness

8. Strengthening cross-systems partnerships for meeting youth’s housing needs

9. Strengthening cross-systems partnerships for meeting youth’s needs for education/employment

10. Strengthening cross-systems partnerships for helping youth establish permanent connections

11. Strengthening cross-systems partnerships for supporting youth’s physical health

12. Strengthen cross-system partnerships for supporting youth’s mental health

13. Strengthen cross-system partnerships for preventing and supporting youth’s substance use

14. Other (please specify) (If SYS_3=Other, SYS_4 appears)

SYS_4 Please specify other TTA topics that would help your organization build cross-system partnerships.

Section 8. Training Needs During Public Health and Community Emergencies

PAN_1 What TTA topic(s) would be most helpful to your organization to deliver services to youth during a public health or community emergency, natural disaster, or other events causing disruption to services?

Please only select those topics for which someone from your organization would likely attend a TTA event.
Select all that apply.

1. Adapting housing, shelter, or service delivery models

2. Advocating for youth most at-risk for public health concerns (e.g., COVID-19, HIV, STIs, etc.)

3. Connecting youth to employment during a public health or community emergency

4. Connecting youth to housing during a public health or community emergency

5. Creating/refining an emergency preparedness plan

6. Direct cash/financial assistance to youth

7. Helping youth establish and maintain social connections

8. Identifying and engaging youth experiencing/at-risk for homelessness in a public health or community emergency

9. Overdose prevention strategies, including harm reduction strategies to support youth who use substances

10. Providing youth with timely and accurate information and resources related to public health or community emergencies

11. Providing youth with support for substance use disorders

12. Recognizing and supporting the mental health needs of youth

13. Supporting youth’s educational engagement

14. Vaccination and other preventative medication (e.g., HPV, PrEP) information

15. Virtual programming or leveraging technology to help adapt to circumstances

16. Other (please specify) (If PAN_1=Other, PAN_2 appears)

PAN_2 Other than those listed above, what other TTA topic(s) would most help your organization as you deliver services to youth during a public health or community emergency, natural disaster, or other events causing disruption to services?

Section 9. Assessments and Screening Tools

In this section, we would like to learn what assessment and screening tools your program(s) use, which can help RHYTTAC understand the TTA topics related to screening and assessment that grantees most need in the coming year.

AST_1 Does your organization use any formal screening or assessment tools for youth experiences or outcomes?

1 Yes
2 No (Go to AST_4)
99 Don’t know (Go to AST_4)

AST_2 Please select all formal screening or assessment tool(s) your RHY program(s) use? If your program uses screening or assessment tools not listed, please also select “Other” and list them in the Other field. Select all that apply.

1. Adverse Childhood Experience Questionnaire (ACE)

2. Ansell-Casey Life Skills Assessments (ACLSA)

3. Child Abuse and Neglect Screening (CANS)

4. Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS)

GAIN)

5. Human Trafficking Screening Tool (HTST or HTST-Short Form)

6. Transition Age Youth – Vulnerability Index - Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool (TAY-VI-SPDAT)

7. None of the above

8. Other (please specify) If AST_2=Other, go to AST_3)

AST_3 Please list the other screening or assessment tools your program(s) use(s). (Open text field) (If AST_2 = other, show AST_3).

AST_4 Thinking about your organization’s needs over the coming year, how important would it be for RHYTTAC to provide training or technical assistance on assessment or screening tools in each of the following areas?

	Not important (0)	Somewhat important (1)	Important (2)	Very important (3)
AST_4a Risk for homelessness or reoccurring homelessness
AST_4b Mental health
AST_4c Substance use
AST_4d Human trafficking or exploitation
AST_4e Domestic violence
AST_4f Trauma/adverse childhood experiences
AST_4g Family needs
AST_4h Benefits eligibility

AST_5 Thinking about your organization’s TTA needs for assessment and screening tools, how important would it be for RHYTTAC to provide training or technical assistance on the following topics?

	Not important (0)	Somewhat important (1)	Important (2)	Very important (3)
AST_5a Selecting the right assessment and screening tools for your program(s)
AST_5b Best practices for administering the selected tools with youth
AST_5c Using implementation and fidelity monitoring tools for assessments/screening
AST_5d Understanding how to use the results of assessment and screening

Section 10. Evidence-Based and Evidence-Informed Practices

EBP_1 Does your RHY program(s) use any evidence-based or evidence-informed practices (EBP/EIP)?

1 Yes
2 No (Go to EBP_6)
99 Don’t know (Go to EBP_6)

EBP_2 Which evidence-based practices (EBPs) or evidence-informed practices (EIPs) do(es) your RHY program(s) utilize?
If your program implements EBPs or EIPs not listed, please also select “Other” and list them in the Other field. Select all that apply.

1. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

2. Motivational Interviewing

3. Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

4. Trauma-Informed Care

5. Wraparound

6. None of the above

7. Other (please specify) (If EBP_2=Other, show EBP_3)

EBP_3 Please list the other evidence-based or evidence-informed practices your RHY program(s) utilize. Next to each, please indicate whether your organization needs or does not need technical assistance to support or improve the implementation of each practice. (Only show if EBP_2 = other)

EBP_4 Would your organization participate in TTA to support or improve implementation of the EBPs your organization uses

1. Yes

2. No

99 Do not know

EBP_5 Does your organization use any formal implementation or fidelity monitoring tools provided in the EBP documentation for the EBPs you indicated using in the first question?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Do not know

4. Prefer not to answer

EBP_6 Would your organization participate in TTA covering continuous quality improvement (CQI) tools and best practices, including implementation and fidelity monitoring tools for EBPs?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Do not know

4. Prefer not to answer

EBP_7 Please list the EBPs/EIPs your organization is not currently using but is interested in offering and needs TA to aide implementation.

Section 11. Overall Feedback

OVF_1 Please share any additional comments about how RHYTTAC can best help your organization achieve your goals in supporting and serving youth who runaway or experience homelessness.

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