A collaborative community effort has been established to serve unaccompanied homeless youth and ultimately make a positive impact in preventing these young people from entering into the welfare or criminal justice system.
The Lazydays Center for Youth Development’s mission is to provide a safe, caring environment to empower homeless youth to reach their full potential through education.
Population Served
The target population is 16 to 22 old youth meeting the McKinney-Vento definition of homelessness "lacking a fixed, regular, adequate night time residence" and unaccompanied "not in the physical custody of their legal parent or guardian."
Eligibility Criteria
The program is not equipped to handle young adults suffering from an untreated mental illness or an active substance abuse addiction. The program will collaborate with community partners who specialize in mental health and substance abuse treatment. The youth can be on probation but not avoiding law enforcement due to an active arrest warrant, currently under investigation for a sexual offense or be convicted of a sexual offense. The youth receiving services from the program must demonstrate motivation to eventually become self-sufficient and follow program recommendations.
Referral Process
Youth can be referred by a community partner or by self-referral. Appointments and referrals are made by emailing or faxing the Outreach Coordinator. Download the Referral Form (Word).
Hillsborough Kids has a special partnership with the Hillsborough County School Social Work Department. School Workers and other high school personnel are encouraged to utilize the School Social Worker Referral Form (Word).
We have created a new online referral system for youth and community partners. This electronic form can be completed by the youth directly or together with their advocate. Please provide as much information as possible and complete all the fields (if applicable). Once submitted an automatic email alert is generated and sent to our Outreach Coordinator. If you have any questions about his process or experience problems contact our office.