Advancing Equity Together
The Advancing Equity Together (AET) is an initiative of the West Central MN Continuum of Care (CoC). The CoC works in collaboration with local and regional partners on a plan and homeless response system that strives to make homeless rare, brief, and one-time. The AET was formed by the CoC since inequities exist in our system and to end homelessness and provide a quality system we must focus on building an equitable system. The CoC also realized that without a special focus on advancing equity, we did not have the focus needed to impact change. The AET initiative was designed to help identify goals and measurable action steps that increase equity in our homeless response system. Since the CoC feels strongly that persons with lived experience of homelessness (PLE) need to be center to system planning and improvements, we have centered work on LE Advisory Boards. From the fall of 2021 to the spring of 2022, the CoC hosted five focus group for PLE who were Indigenous or persons of color. Two BIPOC LE representatives served on a leadership team with the CoC Coordinator, CoC Chair, & AET Chair, reviewing feedback on needs, concerns, and ideas for system improvement. Six goals were formed from this process. These were presented to the CoC and newly formed LE Advisory groups in September of 2022. Unfortunately, progress stalled when our chair left. A new chair began in February 2023 but he has only had time to host 4 meetings since then. While the CoC integrated some of the goals identified by the LE Advisory, work was again stalled until this week when a new chair began and is working on reinvigorating the work. The LE Advisory groups will meet monthly and start work on identifying action step. Additionally, the new chair was hired to help support and empower LE members to not just set goals, but collaboratively work with the CoC to achieve them.