FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Shelters to Shutters Selected for Stand Together’s Catalyst Network Program
Six-month program facilitates the growth of organizations that fight the effects of poverty
VIENNA, Va. – March 20, 2018 – Shelters to Shutters (S2S), a national non-profit that transitions individuals and families from homelessness to economic self-sufficiency, today announced it has been selected to participate in the fourth cohort of Stand Together’s Catalyst Network program. S2S is one of 16 organizations working to solve social programs chosen for the cohort.
Stand Together identifies and supports organizations that are helping people break the cycle of poverty. It provides training and resources to these organizations to help them build operational capacity. Its six-month Catalyst Network program features networking opportunities, facilitated workshops and detailed discussions focused on the application of sound economic and business thinking. In-person summits, in-person learning sessions and tailored coaching calls comprise a hands-on learning environment where the selected organizations can apply cutting-edge economic thinking directly to their businesses to think differently about growth.
“We are extremely excited about this opportunity,” said Andy Helmer, CEO of S2S. “We have grown significantly since our founding four years ago and have much to be proud of, but we are always looking for ways to improve our organziation. We know this will be a stimulating, challenging six months that will increase our ability to move people from homelessness to self-sufficiency.”
S2S and the other Catalyst Network program participants will gather in Arlington, Va., to kick off their cohort with an opening summit focused on the critical role vision plays in an organization’s success and growth.
S2S currently partners with more than 20 apartment management companies – including such major industry players as AvalonBay Communities, Equity Residential and Waterton – to place people experiencing homelessness in onsite, entry-level jobs and provide them with housing at the same communities at which they work. S2S works with a number of homeless-focused non-profits to identify suitable job applicants.
Since its founding in 2014, S2S and its multifamily partners have moved more than 100 people out of homelessness in markets throughout the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Northeast, South and Texas. S2S focuses on the 70 percent of the homeless population who are situationally homeless due to a life-altering event such as job loss, medical or health emergency, divorce, domestic abuse or the loss of a primary income earner. These are people who want to work and return to a life of self-sufficiency but may not receive the governmental support services needed. S2S provides a win-win solution by combating homelessness while providing a pipeline of high-quality, motivated employees for the apartment industry.
About Shelters to Shutters
Shelters to Shutters is a national 501(c)(3) organization that transitions individuals and families from homelessness to economic self-sufficiency by educating and engaging the real estate industry to provide employment and housing opportunities. Across the country, Shelters to Shutters pairs leading property management professionals with individuals experiencing homelessness who are ready to work. The result is an innovative program that provides mentorships for careers in property management, along with full-time employment and housing opportunities for individuals facing homelessness and a pipeline of high quality, motivated employees for the multifamily housing industry.
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