Task:

The New York City Department of Education sought out social impact technologists to help them innovate new approaches to coordinate over 100,000 annual records of students living in temporary housing. A large portion of their operations consisted of manual processes and decentralized data.d

Overview:

The NYC DOE is the largest school districts in the United States, committed to providing quality education to over a million students. Among these students, 1 in 10 are homeless or living in temporary housing. The DOE invests $60 million annually to support the Students in Temporary Housing (STH) program, with over 350 DOE employees. They to ensure that homeless students have equal access to education and necessary resources. The program provides resources such as transportation, tutoring, counseling, and school supplies. STH liaisons work in schools and shelters to help families navigate the education system, ensuring that children continue their education without disruption despite housing instability.

The problem is that key student data was dispersed across 200 homeless shelters in physical binders, leading to delays in connecting students with necessary resources. This manual, fragmented system negatively impacted the ability of the STH team to provide timely support to homeless students.

Problem:

The NYC DOE is the largest school district in the United States, committed to providing quality education to over a million students. Among these students, 1 in 10 are homeless or living in temporary housing. The DOE invests $60 million annually in the Students in Temporary Housing (STH) program, supported by over 350 DOE employees, to ensure that homeless students have equal access to education and necessary resources.

The existing case management system for the STH program was highly inefficient, relying heavily on paper-based processes and outdated computer systems. Key student data was dispersed across 200 homeless shelters in physical binders, leading to delays in connecting students with necessary resources. This manual, fragmented system negatively impacted the ability of the STH team to provide timely support to homeless students.

Solution:

FuseChange, with funding from the Deutsche Bank Foundation of America and support from Microsoft technologies, developed concepts for SMART (Students Making a Real Transition) as a prototype application.

This modern, data-driven case management system aimed to:

1. Eliminate paper-based processes and automate solutions.
2. Integrate systems across government and social service providers.
3. Facilitate organizational collaboration for resource coordination.
4. Track and direct McKinney-Vento Act funding effectively.
5. Provide an open-source platform accessible to school districts nationwide.

Results

Provided guidance to support the district in thinking our a more inclusive and holistic solutions to support:
1. Digital record-keeping, replacing paper-based systems.
2. Enhanced communication and data sharing between the DOE, city departments, and nonprofit partners.
3. Improved coordination of social services, ensuring timely support for students.
4. Efficient tracking and utilization of McKinney-Vento Act funding.