One Day Housing Justice Institute

Led by Dr. Jill Shook

Mission: 

To equip people of faith with biblical (if desired an interfaith) understanding of housing justice with practical tools needed to end homelessness and address the housing crisis, with a focus on church assets and advocacy.

Description:   

The day provides an overview of our own housing stories, God’s story, and by playing the Unjust Housing Policy Game, the story of affordable housing in the US for the past 100 years—factors that have caused today’s crisis and what we have learned that works. We look at what congregations are doing to build affordable housing, the development process, best practices to end homelessness, a practical theology of land use, and advocacy from various faith traditions, an overview of polices that work and what it takes to mobilize people of faith to do housing justice.

Success factors in planning a One-Day Institute: 

a.     Institutes are for just one city and typically planned and tailored by a small team of several congregations and/or other nonprofit within that city that care about homelessness and housing. A team of 5-10 people meet anywhere from 2-5 times to give shape to the event goals, schedule and content, cost, lunch, set up the registration process and promotion for the event.

b.    Those in attendance would be, and have been pastors and interfaith leaders, city planners and other staff and elected officials, community developers, architects, those who are involved with addressing homelessness and more. 

c.     These institutes are best when at least 20 are in attendance—but we have had 100 in attendance. At minimum 20 are necessary for the dynamics needed for break out groups and to foster good discussion. 

d.    The Institute may include some local players as presenters, i.e. affordable housing developers, organizers and others respected and known for their excellence around planning, affordable housing development and ending homelessness depending on the goals and outcomes set for the event. 

e.    Expenses: A $500 honorarium minimum plus travel expenses for Jill Shook and Lucero Garcia, Plus the cost of notebooks and copies. This amount can be negotiated.   

8:30am – Registration and mingle

9:00am –Our stories: how to tell them.

9:30 am –Gods Story: stewardship, ownership, and sabbath economics, biblical housing regulations + housing models

10:30 am –Break

10:45 am –The City’s story

·        Jesus, Jubilee and Loving your city/county

·        Loving your city exercise

·        A speaker from the city (s) on opportunities for housing justice

12:00 PM –Networking lunch—

12:45 PM. Our US Story; the Unjust Housing Policy Game.

1:30 PM  Doing Justice: affordable housing development and SB 4

2:15 PM Discussion: Dispelling myths, turning fear to love.

2:45 PM Root causes of homelessness and the housing crisis and best practices to end and prevent homelessness  

3:15 pm –Break

3:30 pm – Doing justice: redemption of the soul of the city/how to get good policy passed—and breaking into teams. 

4: 45pm—Doing Justice: creating a team

5:30 – Evaluation and circle feedback

5:45pm End our time together and go out for dinner for those who wish to continue conversations 

“Shook’s One-Day Workshop is exactly what faith leaders in Broomfield, Colorado, needed in our efforts to advocate for and actually create affordable housing solutions in our community. Her grasp on housing policy and history in the US informed us for working with government entities. Jill’s presentation of biblical basis for housing justice fueled us for engaging our congregations and working on behalf of people who work, worship, and play in Broomfield that aren’t also able to live in our community. Her tenacity to continue this uphill work inspires us to do the same” Deb Meyer, Broomfield, CO.

If you are interested contact Jill Shook at 626-675-1316 or jill@makinghousinghappen.com