We should see numbers Monday for a part of our society that is often difficult to quantify.
"This is a first go. It's not perfect by any means, but I think it tells us a lot in where we should be going, how we should be coordinating, how we should be talking, and collecting data."
Kristin Miller is the New York program director at the Corporation for Supportive Housing.
Counting the homeless in our town and statewide is not easy. In this era of “Big Data,” the information is needed to justify any response. Monday, the Corporation for Supportive Housing will release what it calls the best count yet.
"This report that will be coming out on Monday is the most thorough report - the most thorough 'ding in the data' that we've ever done in New York State. So you're going to see a lot of numbers that other organizations have put out there, and what we've seen so far...complements."
Researchers examined state data to determine the number of homeless, and consulted local experts to find out how many homeless may need supportive housing - housing with services on site.
"And working with them to really hone in on the number of individuals they think, of the homeless population, are in need of supportive housing. And what we're seeing for Rochester, that number, based on 2013 data, was over 15-hundred people."
Miller told WXXI the onsite services in supportive housing help people live more stable and productive lives. C-S-H believes it helps people find a stable place to live, making it more likely they'll hold a job, be healthier, attend school and even reduce substance abuse.
It can be challenging to put a number on homelessness, since many government agencies collect and report different data.
"We do actually have a whole lot of research that does help us understand the percentage of needs for different subpopulations of homeless."
Miller hopes the report convinces lawmakers to provide more supportive housing across the state, and to consider better data collection.
