I just attended the White House Policy Briefing on Youth Homelessness. At this meeting I got to meet Kristopher Sharp, who recently wrote about his experiences as a homeless youth. What was striking about hearing him speak was his pride, not in getting housing, but in the fact that he was going to be graduating from college in a few weeks. And this got me thinking. College. Right. That is what so many homeless youth need.

I have been working with homeless youth and homeless youth providers for the past 12 years. The great joy of working in this community is the sense of hope the youth engender. As the youth at the White House meeting reminded us, they want our help to become productive adult members of society. It is our job to create the opportunities for these youth to become just that. And that means education. We are fortunate that the McKinney-Vento Act provides funding to assist children in our schools who are experiencing homelessness, but what about the many youth who are 18 to 24 and need help with college?

In my experience working with communities who serve homeless youth, most of youth are 18 to 24 years old. This is an age that developmental psychologists now refer to as emerging adulthood. We know that the brain continues to develop during this time. In our society, while 18-year-olds have legal status as adults, our expectations of young adults are very specific. Think for a minute. For housed youth who are likely to become professionals and leaders in our society, what are they doing at this age? That’s right. They are going to college. It is the pathway in our society for securing not just a job, but a career.

Read more at Huffington Post.