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Researching Homelessness in the Bay Area |
Article Databases:
Search
the following article databases using a keyword search, such as: homeless
AND San Francisco AND children
OR try using the following subject headings: Homelessness; Homeless persons; Poverty; Poor
-- United States; Marginality, Social
EbscoHost databases - on campus or off-campus
w/ library card
Articles
from academic journals, magazines, newspapers & other published sources in
all subject areas.
Gale
PowerSearch databases - on campus or off-campus w/ library card
Articles
from academic journals, popular magazines and newspapers; excellent
set of general periodical databases.
Google Scholar -
Google’s academic search engine accesses a wide range of academic articles, theses,
books, abstracts and court opinions, from academic publishers, professional
societies, online repositories, and universities.
Google search statements:
· Since Google only provides a single search box (instead
of multiple search boxes), use parentheses around search terms for each
concept, and
The majority of sources retrieved by Google Scholar
are usually abstracts
(summaries) of articles, which do not provide the full-text of the article (or
a significant charge is required for the full article). In many cases, you may
be able to retrieve the full-text of these articles by using the Skyline
College Library Article Delivery Service.
Lexis Nexis Academic Universe on
campus or off-campus w/ library card
Full-text
articles from a wide range of news, business & other publications.
o
Click on
“News” on the left column
o
Click on
“All News” below “News” on the left
column
o
In the “Select Source:
” pull-down menu, select: “All News
(English)”
o
In the “Specify Date:
” pull-down menu,
o
for
recent articles, select: “Previous 5
years” or “Previous 2 years”
o
for
articles from the early 1980s, select: “Date
is before…” and then type “1985”
in the box to the right
o
Enter words
for different concepts in separate search boxes, use OR between words for the
same concept in the same search box
S.F. Chronicle Archives
Free Web
database of full-text articles from current and back issues back to 1995 (Under
“Select a Publication Date”, select: “Full Archive”).
N.Y. Times Archives
Search
articles from 1851 – present. Full-text articles from 1851--1922 & from
1987--present are free (with some limits.) Articles from 1923-1986 cost $3.95
per article, but Skyline students doing research for Skyline classes may
request articles through the Library’s Article
Delivery Service.
San Francisco Bay Guardian
Search for articles from San Francisco's leading alternative newsweekly, a good
source of information from a left-wing perspective, particularly city policies
and laws concerning homelessness, SRO information and profiles, homeless people
and advocacy groups. Use search box at
top right of home page to search back issues.
The PLS Online Catalog is the online catalog to find books in Skyline Library and in all libraries in the Peninsula Library System.
Links to Recommended Websites:
Shame
of the City: S.F. Chronicle Special Report on the Homeless
Original
series published in December 2003, plus regularly updated stories.
San Francisco Coalition on Homelessness
Works
with and on behalf of people on the streets and in shelters to bring about
effective changes in policies and practices that affect homeless people.
Publishes Street Sheet, a newspaper sold on the street by homeless
people
San Francisco Local Homeless Coordinating Board
The lead entity in San
Francisco working to ensure a unified homeless strategy. Supported
by the Mayor, the Board of Supervisors, City departments, nonprofit agencies,
people who are homeless or formerly homeless and the community at large. All
efforts are aimed at permanent solutions, and the range of services is designed
to meet the unique and complex needs of individuals who are threatened with or
currently experiencing homelessness.
San Francisco Department of Human Services:
Housing and Homeless Services
Funds
a wide range of services that are part of a city-wide approach to help homeless
individuals and families.
San Francisco Department of Public
Health: Homeless Services
Administers
special projects and contracts with community-based organizations to deliver a
variety of services to homeless persons
A community volunteer project that seeks to connect
Homes
Not Jails
Advocates
for the use of vacant and abandoned housing for people who are homeless in S.F.
Homeless
Children's Network
Comprehensive
mental health services, case management, and family support services for
homeless children, youth, and their families throughout
HomeBase, The Center for Common Concerns
"
National
Coalition for the Homeless
Leading national
organization working on homelessness, engages in public education, policy
advocacy, and grassroots organizing.
National
Alliance to End Homelessness
A
nonprofit, non-partisan, organization committed to preventing and ending
homelessness in the United States; analyzes policy and develops pragmatic,
cost-effective policy solutions.
National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty (NLCHP)
The
only national legal advocacy organization dedicated to preventing and ending
homelessness. Through litigation, policy advocacy, and public education,
the lawyers at the NLCHP address the root causes of homelessness at the
national, state, and local levels.
Larkin Street Youth Services
"Mission-driven
organization responding to the needs of homeless and runaway youth on the
streets of
Dolores
Street Community Services
Operates S.F. shelters mainly for homeless Latino immigrants. Also offers ESL
classes, case management, job training referrals, medical and mental health
referrals, alcohol and substance abuse referrals, and legal referrals.
Shelter
Network of San Mateo County
Nonprofit
organization providing housing and services for homeless families and
individuals in San Mateo County.
Swords to Plowshares
Counseling, case management, employment &
training, housing, and legal assistance to veterans in the San Francisco Bay
Area.
Homeless
Action Center
Provides legal services to homeless and low-income
residents of
VolunteerMatch: S.F. Homeless & Housing
List of S.F. volunteer organizations involved in homelessness issues.
Bay
Area Volunteer Information Center
Information about volunteer opportunities in the
New York City’s Coalition for
the Homeless
For more than 25 years has developed and implemented humane,
cost-effective strategies to end mass homelessness in New York City. Model
programs represent solutions that can dramatically reduce the homeless
population and prevent homelessness among those most at risk.
Statistical information on homelessness:
2011 San
Francisco Homeless Count and Survey
Hundreds
of volunteers underwent a community-wide effort to count the number of homeless
people in San Francisco the night of January 27, 2011. You can also read a critique of this survey
is at: “S.F. Homeless Count
Is a Farce -- And I Know This Because I Volunteered”
Homelessness
Research Institute
Research
and education arm of the National Alliance to End
Homelessness; builds and disseminates knowledge that informs
policy change.
Facts about Homelessness from the National Coalition for the
Homeless
The National Coalition
for the Homeless publishes fact sheets on various aspects of
homelessness. Each sheet summarizes facts and issues and contains a list of
recommended reading for further research.
Annual
Homeless Assessment Report to Congress
Data on sheltered homeless persons, a profile of sheltered homeless
persons during a six-month period, a discussion of the nation's capacity for
housing homeless persons, and an examination of how homeless persons use
emergency shelters and transitional housing.
Housing
Landscape 2011: An Annual Look at the Housing Affordability Challenges of
America’s Working Households
Housing affordability for working families is the focus
of this report from the Center for Housing Policy which examines nationwide
trends from 2008-2009.
The
Heterogeneity of Homeless Youth in America: Examining Typologies
Annual
prevalence estimates for homeless youth in the U.S. have ranged as high as 1.6
million among those aged 13-17. In this report from the National Alliance to End Homelessness, researchers
present a history of typologies of homeless youth and also suggest
recommendations for further research on this population.
Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population:
2000
from
the U.S. Census
Homelessness: Programs and the People
They Serve
December 1999 National Survey of
Homeless Assistance Providers and Clients, from the
Permanent Homelessness in America? (1986)
This
paper seeks to determine the approximate number of homeless persons in the
U.S., the rate of change in the number, and whether or not the problem is
likely to be permanent or transitory. It makes particular use of a 1985 survey of over 503 homeless people
in
“Homeless in
America, Homeless in California”
February 2001 article from The Review of Economics and Statistics, by John
M. Quigley, Steven Raphael, and Eugene Smolensky,
hypothesizes that variations in homelessness arise from changed circumstances
in the housing market and in income distribution. Includes census counts,
shelter bed counts, records of transfer payments, and administrative agency
estimates.
A Generation of
Widening Inequality
August 2007 report from
the California Budget Project examines the trends in income and wage inequality
over the past generation. Included are industry trends, wage trends, the
gender gap in terms of take home pay, California's workforce (immigration
status, and age), and more. Comparisons are available for the
Paycheck to Paycheck (2008)
"The Center for Housing Policy presents wage information for
more than 60 occupations and home prices and rents for nearly 200 metropolitan
areas...See how workers in your metropolitan area are faring in the housing market; view
the big picture for housing affordability for working families in various
occupations across the country; and use these analyses as a template to
examine wages and housing costs in neighborhoods in your community. "
Ending Chronic Homelessness:
Strategies for Action
March
2003 report by the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services
Crimes Committed Against
Homeless Persons
2002 report generated in response to
California Senate Resolution 18 which requested the State Attorney General to
assess the extent of crimes against the homeless
California Statistics & Data Web
Links
Links to additional websites related to
Using
strategies and tips from the guide: “Evaluating Information from Web Pages”,
decide whether the following pages would be good quality sources to use for a
college research paper.
(What is
the difference between popular magazines and academic journals?) (What is a “content farm”?) (Examples
of “content farms”)
1. Youth Homelessness in America: The Changing Face of the
Homeless *
2. 2.
Homelessness
in the United States *
3. 72
hours of Hell
*
4. Our
Tired, Our Poor, Our Kids *
3
6. The
Challenge of Pregnancy among Homeless Youth: Reclaiming a Lost Opportunity *
7. Homeless
youths' descriptions of their parents' child-rearing practices *
8. Our
runaway and homeless youth: a guide to understanding
9. Youth Homelessness:
Facts and Solutions
10. Street
life is no life for children
11. The
Homeless in the United States
12. End
Homelessness
13. Homeless
youth perceptions vary by race
18.
Educating Homeless Children
19. Homelessness: Facts
and Statistics
* Page evaluated during class. Do not select for extra
credit assignment.
EXTRA
CREDIT: (This assignment is
not currently offered.)
1.
Select one of the pages above or choose another page or article related to
homelessness to evaluate. (*Do not
select a page that was discussed in class.*)
2. Copy the text from “Questions
for Evaluating Web Pages” (html) or download “Questions
for Evaluating Web Pages” (Word file.)
3.
Answer each of the questions thoughtfully about the page you are evaluating,
referring to the
guide: “Evaluating Information from Web Pages” for help.
Click
here to see the model for how to answer
the questions for an example.
4.
Email your completed assignment (including questions and answers) to
On the email subject line, write: ENGL
100 – Westfall
Due Date:
If you
have any questions, please contact Eric Brenner (at the Library reference desk
Monday – Friday mornings, by email or by phone: 650-738-4177.)
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last revised: 4-25-12 |