ORLANDO SERVICES

Resource Center and Community Services

All services provided by Covenant House Florida are free of charge. In Orlando, our Resource Center welcomes all who are experiencing homelessness or unstably housed without judgement and strives to meet the needs of all youth with immediacy, absolute respect, dignity and unconditional love. The CHF Orlando Resource Center is where young people can get a a moment of respite. Youth from the community experiencing homelessness and housing instability are welcome to drop-in to take a shower, get internet and phone service to search for employment or complete schoolwork. At the Rerouce Center, they also receive items such as a clothing, nutritious bag lunch, hygiene products, and receive information about all of the services that CHF Orlando has to offer.

Covenant House Florida offers two programs that meet the needs of these youth on a daily basis: The Community Service Center and Street Outreach. The Community Services Center (CSC) serves as an integral part of Covenant House Florida Orlando. A vast majority of youth who are experiencing homelessness may not be ready to embrace the structure of transitional housing, but are eager to begin working towards their goals. These youth receive encouragement to enroll in case management services that help them create a housing stability plan and can refer youth to community resources including all of the other CHF Orlando Supportive Service Programs.

Furthermore, the Street Outreach Program is comprised of outreach case managers who travel throughout Seminole and Orange counties to provide information on community agencies, meals, hygiene and dignity items, transportation passes, as well as medical and mental health referrals and housing referrals to youth who are experiencing homelessness.

General Education Diploma Program (GED): Over 40% of the youth served by Covenant House Florida in Orlando do not have a high school diploma. CHF offers educational services that are specially tailored to meet the individual needs of the youth. GED Classes include educational counseling to encourage the pursuit of the youth’s post-secondary education goals. CHF Orlando has an established relationship with multiple community partners to expand the scope of services available for our program participants, to include Valencia College and Orange Technical College, where CHF youth can enroll and begin their college education with the tuition waived.

Workforce Development

Over 70% of the youth we serve are unemployed. In order to help the youth become financially self-sufficient, CHF Orlando offers a Workforce Development Program that focuses on obtaining and maintaining a job and includes the following topics: resume building, cover letter writing, basic customer service manners, job searching online and in-person, professional attire, conflict resolution in the workplace, personality assessment tool, career assessment, communication, teamwork, identifying internships/mentors, budgeting and team building. 

Y.E.S. Osceola

The Youth Enrichment Services (YES) Osceola program is designed to meet youth where they are in their journey to self-sufficiency. Youth work one-on-one with a Case Manager to create an individualized plan to achieve their goals. The program offers assistance with obtaining employment, education referrals, assistance in applying for benefits, financial literacy, housing assessments, and help applying for day care assistance among many other things.

Housing Program

The tri-county area (Orange, Osceola, and Seminole) has limited housing options for young people experiencing homelessness. Through the Rights of Passage Apartment Living (ROPAL) Program, CHF Orlando offers transitional housing beds for youth ages 18 to 24 through scattered-site apartments located in Orange and Osceola Counties for youth that are unstably housed. This program is partly funded by HUD through the Continuum of Care (CoC).