Housing & Opportunities that are Useful for Students' Excellence (HOUSE)

Rush University is committed to providing resources for students who are at risk of homelessness or who are homeless.

The Housing and Opportunities that are Useful for Students' Excellence (HOUSE) Liaison seeks to provide assistance to students experiencing homelessness. Rush University’s designated HOUSE Liaison for this program is Dr. Sharon Gates, the Senior Director of Student Diversity and Community Engagement. She can be reached at (312) 942-3670 or sharon_gates@rush.edu. Office location is 600 South Paulina, Academic Building, Suite 202.

It is the HOUSE Liaison’s role to work with campus partners to offer assistance and resources to enrolled Rush students who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. The liaison strives to:

understand provisions pertaining to the financial aid eligibility of homeless students,
identify services and resources that are available to and appropriate for a homeless student,
act as an intermediary between a homeless student and the office of financial aid, student support services, and
connect a homeless student to a local continuum of care program.

Close-up of a person's hands holding a phone

Taking those first steps

Please complete the Student Assistance Form. The HOUSE Liaison will reach out to you directly if you identify housing as one of your challenges.

Get started here

Student assistance and support

Students can sometimes face unanticipated life events and challenges that can disrupt their studies and ability to focus on their goals. We are here to support you.

If you are experiencing challenges and need to talk to someone, please don’t hesitate to take the following steps:

Fill out the Student Assistance Form that will automatically route to Rush Wellness to begin the intake process.
Email 2323@pager.rush.edu or page the Rush Wellness team 24/7 at (312) 942-6000, ext. 2323. Your page will be responded to within 60 minutes or less.

For life threatening matters, please contact 911.

Please know that we value your privacy and comfort. You will not be asked to share specific details about the events that lead to your unstable housing situation. Also, the liaison will not share any information with other on-campus faculty or staff unless you give permission or the liaison is concerned that your safety is at risk.

Additional resources

On

Local, state and federal services
- Illinois Department of Human Services
  https://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=30360
  Help Line: (800) 843-6154
- National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE)
  https://nche.ed.gov/data
  (800) 308-2145
  homeless@serve.org
- Housing Authority of Cook County
  https://thehacc.org
  (708) 758-4024
- Chicago Housing Authority
  https://www.thecha.org
  (312) 742-8500
Rush resources
- Rush Center for Clinical Wellness
- Rush Wellness Pathways
- Student navigator: Angelique_DeBellis@rush.edu
Essential needs – food, health care, etc.
Students that become homeless after enrolling in college often have no experience applying for and securing social services. Below you’ll find a list of the most basic and necessary resources available.
- The Illinois Application for Benefits Eligibility (ABE) is now a one-stop form for determining if you would be eligible for assistance with insurance or food.
- SNAP - The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is designed to support low-income individuals to purchase healthy foods. Further details about the program, eligibility requirements and how to apply are given on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service website.
- Medicaid and CHIP - Between Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), eligible, unaccompanied homeless youth can receive health insurance and medical attention once enrolling in the programs.
- Health Coverage for Homeless and At-Risk of Homelessness are likely to be eligible for health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act (often referred to as the ACA). The ACA vastly simplifies and expands access to affordable health care, including for low-income and homeless youth, and allows states to expand eligibility for Medicaid, a health care program for low-income individuals.

Connect with us

HOUSE Liaison
Dr. Sharon Gates
(312) 942-3670
sharon_gates@rush.edu

Student Navigator
Angelique DeBellis
angelique_debellis@rush.edu

Student assistance and support

Local, state and federal services

Rush resources

Essential needs – food, health care, etc.