Rise Competitors

Youth Villages is a national leader in mental and behavioral health committed to finding the most effective solutions to help children, families and young adults overcome obstacles and live successfully. Working through direct services, partnerships with other high-performing agencies and advocacy, we collaborate to bring positive change to child welfare, children’s mental health and justice systems. Our 5,000 employees serve more than 47,000 children and young adults in more than 120 locations in 29 states and Washington, D.C. Youth Villages has been recognized by the Harvard Business School and U.S. News & World Report and was identified by The White House as one of the nation’s most promising results-oriented nonprofit organizations. Learn more at youthvillages.org. Youth Villages has been recognized by the Harvard Business School and U.S. News & World Report and was identified by The White House as one of the nation’s most promising results-oriented nonprofit organizations.

No youth should ever be without a home — period. This urgent belief and over 50 years of experience have placed Covenant House at the forefront of the fight against youth homelessness. Founded in 1972, Covenant House is the largest primarily privately-funded agency in the North and Central America offering free 24/7 crisis care, housing, and supportive services for youth, young families, and survivors of human trafficking. Located in 34 cities across 5 countries (the United States, Canada, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico) Covenant House provides shelter, food, medical and mental health care, crisis intervention, educational and vocational services, and an array of supportive services to youth facing homelessness regardless of their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. The Covenant House mission is centered and built on community, where youth, staff, volunteers, and partners love one another unconditionally, respect each other absolutely, and dedicate ourselves to a covenant of compassion and hope.

Our mission is to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning (LGBTQ+) youth from the harm of homelessness, and to support them in becoming safe and independent as they move from adolescence to adulthood. As the visibility of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ+) people grows in our society, more and more LGBTQ+ teens are finding the courage to come out of the closet. Tragically, as many as 25% of these teens are rejected by their families, and many end up homeless on the streets. Homeless LGBTQ+ teens are more likely than straight homeless teens to be subjected to violence on the streets, and in the homeless shelter system. They suffer from inordinate rates of mental illness, trauma, HIV infection and substance abuse. The Ali Forney Center (AFC) was started in June of 2002 in response to the lack of safe shelter for LGBTQ+ youth in New York City. We are committed to providing these young people with safe, dignified, nurturing environments where their needs can be met, and where they can begin to put their lives back together. AFC is dedicated to promoting awareness of the plight of homeless LGBTQ+ youth in the United States with the goal of generating responses on local and national levels from government funders, foundations, and the LGBTQ+ community.