Youth Housing
Homeless, Runaway, and Foster Care
Inaugural Term: Autumn 2027
Campaign Goal: $2,921,968
Providing sustainable and reliable housing for homeless, runaway, and foster youth is essential to improving educational outcomes. Young scholars will be supported by WAIE residential staff and participate in the Hebrew lifestyle while receiving housing, meals, and education. They will be able to live with the community through school and up to two years after graduation as they start a business, enter the workforce, or attend a higher education institution.
Our goal is to raise a total of $5,843,935 by the time we break ground on construction for our first dormitory. The first portion of $2,921,968 will be used between September 2027 and August 2028 to pay for construction costs and the development of the housing complex. The remaining funds of $2,921,967 will be applied directly to paying for staff, meals, and other resources associated with supporting the young scholars.
Program Facts
new youth annually
Each dormitory is planned and designed to house a total of 100 youth per grade level with dorm rooms included for adult staff to supervise. Youth will share a room with one other person of the same gender and the genders will be separated in the housing layout. Currently, we are looking at land in South King County to serve 800 youth.
months long
Youth who choose to stay in the housing complex, at the age of 13 years old, will have access to secure and supportive housing and education for the full year. Also, after they graduate they will be able to stay until the age of 22 years old to support them in securing a stable future for themselves in the greater community.
students awarded financial aid
Our goal is to raise enough funds that we are able to provide 100% of the youth we accept into the youth housing complex with free access to both the dormitory and the curriculum provided by WAIE. The goal is to be supportive of the young scholars while providing them with employment opportunities at no cost to them.
housing amenities
During their time with the housing complex, they will have access to a multitude of amenities based on the principles of WAIE such as plant-based meals, window garden, greywater system, solar-powered, behavioral health services, and more. Continue reading below for more information.
Build Our Own Table
Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? One of the core principles of the Hebrew lifestyle is to care for children who are in need and provide for them so that they may grow and become who they are called to be. The Youth Housing Complex is designed to meet this principle by providing runaway youth, homeless youth, and youth in the foster care system with new options to continue their education and maintain consistent shelter.
The dormitory will be opened to all youth who wishes to participate and follow the principles of WAIE but special emphasis will be placed on Black Americans (Foundational Black Americans, Africans, Hebrew Israelites, Afro Arabs, and Moors), South Indigenous/Native American (LatinX, Latino, Latina, Hispanic, and Indigenous tribes below the equator), North Indigenous/Native American (Indigenous tribes above the equator), and Pacific Islander (Austronesia), and Asiatic (East Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia) communities.
As part of their stay with the community, youth will cook meals, farm/garden, clean, help facilitate activities, and tutor younger peer residents. Also, youth, of all ages, will participate in a variety of familial activities throughout the year to support their social-emotional growth as young leaders in a global community.
Mental Wellness
All youth will have access to an assigned behavioral health counselor and an assigned career and college readiness counselor as a member of WAIE. However, in addition to this service youth who are working towards overcoming addiction will have additional resources to help them in accomplishing the goal of beating addiction.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship
The health of our youth is important to the leaders of WAIE. Thus, we provide full medical and dental benefits to youth who enrolled in our dormitory and with our school. Our residential staff will work with each youth to help them find medical and dental primaries that best fit their holistic needs.
Employment Opportunities
In an effort to help our youth succeed, not only are they expected to contribute to cleaning, cooking, and other duties around the dormitory house, but they will also have opportunities to be compensated for their work on campus. This helps the youth have spending money for social activities and other items as well as save for the future.
Hebrew Lifestyle
Intertwined into the guiding principles of the dorm is the Hebrew Lifestyle, Culture, and Language. It provides a foundation for young scholars on Afro-Asiatic ancestral teachings and their applications to modern-day life. The Hebrew lifestyle focuses on a plant-based lifestyle, proper business practices, and building a community and society that fosters growth and good stewardship on a global stage.
What are some of the features of the dormitory?
Window Garden
Taking guidance from the Bosco Verticale in Milan, Italy, our dormitory will be one with plant life to create a positive atmosphere for our youth and provide the opportunity for them to be good stewards of the planet. The plant life will help moderate the temperature in both summer and winter but will also convert CO2 that is produced around campus. Additionally, it will filter out dust particles and protect our youth from noise pollution and create a microhabitat for insects and birds.
Bedroom Layout
Taking guidance from other innovative dorm layouts, our dormitories will have a bunk bed set up in the middle of each room. This allows for each youth to have the privacy they need when they need it while also maintaining a level of social engagement with their roommate when desired. Each room will come with lighting on either side as to not disturb their roommate if one is an earlier riser than the other. They will also each have their own desk, chair, seated bench, and closet for clothing and shoes.
Solar-Powered
The dormitories will be built with a focus on being environmentally friendly so we do less harm to the planet while helping the community. The dorm will gain its primary source of power through solar-powered panels. Solar power systems derive clean, pure energy from the sun. Renewable energy also improves public health. Coal and natural gas plants produce air and water pollution that is harmful to human health. But replacing them with renewable energy sources can reduce premature mortality.
Farm and Garden
Onsite there will be a garden that will allow the youth to gain the necessary skills in being self-sufficient. Youth will be able to grow most of the ingredients for a plant-based lifestyle on campus in the garden with the help of the staff. This is a very important skill for youth to have when it comes to survival if they are ever in a situation where they need to grow their own food. Also, this will help them learn skills for maintaining their own business if they ever decide to go down the path of green or farm entrepreneurship.
Greywater System
Greywater is gently used water from your sinks, showers, tubs, and washing machines. The system will allow us to better utilize water for dorm functions. Water from the bathroom and laundry can be reused for the toilets and other functions that don’t require clean water. Thus, cutting down on the usage of water by our youth and our community. Another benefit of greywater is it can be used for the watering of plants on the property and other earth-based maintenance, but should not be consumed by humans.
Employment Opportunities
The goal is that each youth housing complex will have an Innovation Center on campus too. This will provide employment opportunities for our residents who are age 16 and older. They’ll be able to work at the eateries, as catering staff, as event staff, and much more to earn additional funds for their financial wellness. Also, this will provide the youth with good resume skills and personal skills as they prepare for their future career and college readiness outcomes and goals.
