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Research Partnership with the Homeless-Experienced Advocacy and Leadership (HEAL) Network

Homelessness Hub partners with San Diego's HEAL Network on a variety of projects and initiatives. Launched in 2019, HEAL is overseen by the San Diego Housing Federation. HEAL focuses on amplifying the voices and perspectives of individuals with lived experience of homelessness.

Ongoing Project as of February 2024: Evaluation of HEAL Network

Homelessness Hub is currently undertaking an evaluation of the Homelessness-Experienced Advocacy and Leadership (HEAL) Network, including its training and ongoing program. We are doing so in close collaboration with the San Diego Housing Federation (the sponsoring agency) and eleven HEAL Network members as co-researchers. We are looking to understand if the network is achieving its aims, what members’ experiences have been like over the past few years, and how the program might grow/expand/improve to become even more effective and impactful. We believe that collaborative research like this is one way we can help “change the story” about homelessness, shift public attitudes, and impact both policy and practice.

Project Team

  • Kuni Stearns, HEAL Network
  • Deforrest Hancock, HEAL 
  • Cassandra Ellis, HEAL Network
  • Jason Ritchie, HEAL Network
  • Dennis Larkin, HEAL 
  • Liz Rosas, HEAL 
  • Leslie R. Lewis, PhD, MPH, Director of Education and Community Engagement 

Project Funding

  • Sociological Initiatives Foundation

Past Research: Examining Client and Provider Needs in San Diego 

This report, published in November 2023, is based on a collaborative research project between the Homelessness Hub and four members of the Homeless-Experienced Advocacy and Leadership (HEAL) Network. Using HEAL’s policy priorities, this project came to focus on client and provider needs in San Diego: from homelessness services to permanent supportive housing.

Read the full report here. 

Project Team

  • Amelia Broadnax, HEAL 
  • Deforrest Hancock, HEAL 
  • Dennis Larkin, HEAL
  • Kuni Stearns, HEAL
  • Stacey Livingstone, Homelessness Hub Postdoctoral Fellow

Project Funding

  • Jacob's Social Impact Fellowship