River Hitt HiGH SCHOOL _ HOWARD COUNTY 12101 Clarksville Pike » Clarksville, MD 21029 + 410-313-7120 « (F) 410-313-7406 + www.hepss.org/thhs PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM Gifted and Talented Program Product Abstract Each student isthe Independent Research Program must carry out an authentic, advanced research projet, which is capable of evaluating its quality, authenticity, and novelty. The following information, written by the student, provides an overview ofthe project proposal as planned. Student: Alexandre Docouto Date: June 6, 2019 Research Title: Childhood Homelessness: Programs and Aid in the DMV Area Purpose: The research is aimed to provide a missing link between services for homeless and runaway youth to the programs and aid that are designed to help them, Expected Product: By the end of this year, the goal isto create a multi-media campaign that brings awareness to the issue and to connect children in need with the services that can help them live more comfortably and safely. The campaign will be tailored towards Howard County public schools and raising awareness of the growing homeless population within the system. Novelty of Product: There has never been @ multi-media campaign in Howard County or the Howard County Public School system that is directly targeting the homeless youth’s access to services as well as the public knowledge of the growing homeless population within the school system. Audience: This project is designed to target both the homeless population, helping them get access to aid and services that they are unaware of, as well as targeting unsuspecting locals who are unaware of the situation at hand, Procedure or Method: 1. Conducted background research, starting in January, by reading scholarly articles on a variety of issues, programs designed to aid the issue, and the steps different areas of the country are taking against homelessness. 2. Visited the University of Maryland Baltimore Campus to connect with deeper articles and studies. Working with the librarians, new articles with more specific information was acquired. 3. Wrote background paper which explained the issue and the variety of faults which cause for such a high homeless population country-wide. 4, Contacted Jacki Moffi who assisted in the editing process of the paper. 5. Collected data and performed literature reviews on the programs that are offered in Maryland, Washington D.C., and Virgini 6. Interviewed Lauren Stroesser, one of the Pupil Personnel Officers in Howard County. Data was provided during the interview such as where the greatest homeless population is located in Howard County, reset Med’ satnrsinee Dre 06/17/ 9 Class of 2021