In the past year, Cleveland Heights School District in Cleveland, Ohio saw an uptick in homelessness among students.
Last school year, 140 students were considered homeless, according to Bob Ivory with Students of Promise, a community organization that aims to “close the achievement gap” among middle and high schoolers in Cuyahoga County.
This year, the number has increased to 167 students. This equates to about 91 families in the district impacted by homelessness.
So, a local nondenominational church — Imani Temple Ministries — is converting a rectory into a dorm-style housing facility for five to six families — roughly 30 people.
A rectory is typically the residence a church provides a minister or priest to live in. At Imani, it will now be home to a myriad of people in need.
Women and children under the age of 16 will be welcome to stay in the space for up to 120 days, working with case managers to help them secure permanent housing and other community services, like career counseling and financial literacy programs.
Renovations are already in progress and are expected to be completed by the end of 2026, according to Cleveland.com.
The Cleveland City Council plans to give $250,000 towards funding the project with American Rescue Plan Act money.
Councilman Pernel Jones has supported Students of Promise in the past.
“How can you learn 2 plus 2 equals 4 if you’re at home struggling,” he said, “[or] without a home.”
Council President Dale Miller has also praised the project, which would expand homelessness services outside of downtown Cleveland, “so that people can get served in their own neighborhood.”
Once approved, the city’s funding would help finish renovations and go toward helping to run the facility for families in need.
Although the housing services are not exclusively for Cleveland Heights or University Heights neighbors, they are expected to make up most of the residents, since the need is so large.
Besides, Students of Promise has a lasting relationship with Imani Temple Ministries, hosting back-to-school rallies and drives to support low-income families and students to “get on the right track,” as Ivory said.
While the renovated rectory promises to provide a safe haven for countless families in the area, Students of Promise’s work will continue to uplift and support students to succeed in the Cleveland area.
“My future is promising,” the Students of Promise creed states. “But first I must promise myself that I will do my best, settle for nothing less, as I respect others, my community, and myself. I am important, yes!”
Header image courtesy of Valis55 (CC BY-SA 3.0)
