FutureForce: Creative Futures, Stable Foundations

Affordable housing and homelessness

South LA Central LA East LA West LA South Bay Long Beach County of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a countywide benefit) City of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a citywide benefit) San Fernando Valley Gateway Cities

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

Better Youth will address the intersection of housing instability and workforce exclusion experienced by foster and system-impacted youths, particularly those pursuing careers in the Arts, Media, and Entertainment (AME) sector. These young people face systemic barriers like trauma, lack of financial support, limited access to mentorship and networks, and unstable housing, which undermine their ability to engage in long-term career development that positions them for upward mobility. While creative industries represent one of California’s largest economic sectors, they remain inaccessible to youth without stable foundations. By providing emergency housing stipends and supportive services, Better Youth removes immediate barriers to participation and creates conditions where young people can access meaningful career paths in the creative economy. This approach acknowledges that workforce readiness cannot happen without first addressing basic needs and ensuring stability.

BY will pilot an initiative to provide emergency housing vouchers to stabilize foster and system-impacted youth. This pilot recognizes that workforce readiness is impossible without addressing the need for security. By offering short-term housing assistance, individualized housing resource navigation, and housing vouchers, the pilot creates the stability necessary for youth to fully engage in workforce development programs. This pilot ensures that youth remain connected to education and workforce programs during life and housing transitions. This demonstration is designed to model a scalable, trauma-informed approach to bridging survival and sustainable creative employment.
Currently, only 60% of our youth participants report being in stable housing, highlighting an internal gap in services.
Our expanded services for housing resources vouchers were informed by findings from the report, “CASH LA – Direct Cash Transfer as Prevention – Focus Group Report,” which examined the impact of Direct Cash Transfers as Prevention (DCT-P) across seven states. In the study, eight CBOʻs served as fund administrators for youth ages 16–27 at risk of homelessness. As of January 2025, the program demonstrated strong outcomes: 90% of participants reached housing stability after receiving an average of $3,937 in direct support. We propose up to three months of bridge housing support, with the understanding that our approach is non-prescriptive. Some youth need more time than others.

BY’s pilot will reduce housing instability and expand workforce access for foster and system-impacted youth in LA. With over 7,100 Transition Age Youth (TAY) in California’s foster care system—and LA being home to the largest share—housing insecurity remains a major barrier to career development. While a small subset of TAY meet the federal definition of chronic homelessness, most experience episodic or short-term instability, including couch surfing or being doubled-up, which goes unaddressed by existing systems that prioritize the chronically unhoused. Many TAY report that support services feel stigmatizing or inaccessible, leading to underutilization. BY is uniquely positioned to bridge this gap through deep, trusting relationships with the youth it serves. By providing emergency housing stipends in conjunction with housing navigation resources and wraparound supports, this pilot will model a scalable approach to stabilize youth and connect them to career paths.