2021 RHY National Grantee Training

Welcome to the Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) and the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Center (RHYTTAC) 2021 Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) National Grantee Training. This year's event will be held virtually from November 16-18, 2021, between 12pm - 6pm ET, with a Welcome Reception on November 15th beginning at 12pm ET. The RHY National Grantee Training is no-cost to FYSB RHY Grantees and youth-serving organizations.

Through the RHY Program, FYSB supports street outreach, emergency shelters and longer-term transitional living and maternity group home programs to serve young people experiencing runaway or homeless situations. We anticipate over 1,200 attendees seeking to improve their approaches to program implementation, strengthen community partnerships, connect with federal staff, and network with other grantees. This event provides an opportunity to share knowledge, experiences, and innovation to pursue the common goal of providing effective, culturally responsive and trauma informed services to youth and young adults experiencing homelessness.

Recordings in eLearning

• In RHYTTAC’s eLearning platform, you can search among hundreds of training topics and specific training modules by creating a free user account. After logging in, click on 'Catalog" and then filter courses using the search bar to access sessions from the 2021 RHY National Grantee Training by using the following term:
• Search Term: RHYCONF21

Theme

“Brighter Futures: Strengthening Pathways for Youth Success" is the theme for the 2021 Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) National Grantee Training.  

Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) programs have always adapted and strengthened pathways for the youth they serve by developing innovative ways to address trauma and providing services that lead to youth success. This is particularly true as we continue through and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) and the Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Center (RHYTTAC) 2021 RHY National Grantee Training will expand understanding and show how different pathways, and supportive connections all lead to brighter futures. 

Speakers

Dr. L.J. Punch will provide the opening plenary presentation. Dr. Punch will weave together the themes of gun violence, COVID, homelessness, and opioids with experiences working directly with their community and youth during the last several years of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a trained trauma surgeon, whose work has moved outside the walls of the hospital, he will speak about the power of community partnerships and how to build equitable systems of care that can address trauma and resiliency.

The closing plenary speaker is Dr. Joi Lewis. Together, we will hold space to compassionately sit with our grief, as we interrupt the effects of toxic stress and trauma experienced in our everyday lives, and practice ways to still cultivate joy. Dr. Joi will use the Orange Method (OM) framework, which is grounded in the deep concept of Healing Justice to invite, inspire, explore, and unpack the practice of Radical Self-Care. She will use poetry, song, and stories to illuminate how individuals and institutions transform against the backdrop of oppression-induced toxic stress and trauma.

To learn more about our keynote speakers, visit our Speakers page. 

Spark Stories

Check out these Spark Stories, topical 10-minute inspiring talks to spark Conversational Networking discussion in the 1:1 Networking tab, or self-guided reflection. 

• Expanding Binary Thinking for LGBTQ+ Youth Housing Justice; Dr. Jama Shelton, Assistant Professor at the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College 
• Beats, Breaks & Balance; Aisha Fukushima, RAPtivism 

Welcome Reception - Monday, November 15th 

Kick off the 2021 RHY National Grantee Training with us during a Welcome Reception on Monday, November 15th from 12:00-1:00 PM ET. Join your colleagues and attendees for a fun and interactive opening reception.

Don’t miss the opportunity to engage with RHY Grantees, youth-serving organizations, and youth and young adults (YYA) in our Artistic Expression Displays where participants will share their stories of innovation, inspiration, and reflection.*

Schedule at a Glance

Event Times/Sessions are subject to change

Support

For questions regarding the 2021 RHY National Grantee Training, please reach out to RHYTTAC at [email protected]

*For the purposes of this event, Youth and Young Adults are anyone under 26 years of age and may include participants or recent alumni of RHY programs or other youth-serving programs.