TX State Students Bringing Local Housing Issues To The Forefront

By Jenna Hawkins

Four Texas State University students are attempting to raise local awareness on affordable housing resources San Marcos.

Dominique Mercado, Anna Huff, Emily Keller, and Morgan Londene are participants of the 2015 Bateman Case Study Competition, a national competition hosted by the Public Relations Student Society of America. The campaign given to all participants this year is the Home Matters Movement, a national initiative started in 2013 by a group of “visionary housing professionals and leaders that identified a gap in public discourse.”

Students were challenged to localize the issues of the Home Matters challenge and present their work to the PRSSA.

“Schools from all over the country have the opportunity to compete and we all get the same client,” Huff said in an interview with The Daily Record. “We basically put on a campaign or some kind of project for them and then submit it at the end of February.”

The group has been visiting the local food bank, attending City Council, Rotary Club meetings, and spreading the word on campus by visiting with people in the campus Quad.

As part of the Bateman Competition rules, students needed to collaborate with a local nonprofit organization in order to qualify, and as a result, they are working with the local Housing Authority.

“It’s kind of like a co-branding initiative kind of thing,” Kellar said to the Daily Record. “Not only are we working for Home Matters, but we’re also working for the Housing Authority to raise awareness in what they’re doing.”

Exactly what does the Housing Authority do? They provide public housing for people with low incomes by helping them pay a rent amount based on their income.  In order to help a range of people from the elderly to single parents the Housing Authority offers three different programs.

One program is the “Family Self-Sufficiency Program,” a five-year program that helps people transition from government assistance back into the private market. This program requires individuals to sign a 5 year contract, which includes goals that will help them progress back into being independent when the contract expires.

The second is specifically for children. Volunteers help the kids with their homework, including a local science teacher that performs experiments with them. Other volunteers include Texas State students that teach music lessons and karate lessons from a recent graduate of Texas State.

Their third program not only helps assist the elderly and disabled with finding appropriate housing, but also provides help with health issues. From transporting them to doctor appointments to managing their medication, they make sure their residents are cared for.

These four students have been gathering information on affordable housing in San Marcos in an effort to make it easier for those in need to find needed resources. When they attend meetings and spread word on the university campus quad the group has a sign-up sheet for anyone looking to volunteer. All volunteer’s names will be submitted for a raffle to win prizes.

If you would like to find out more information about the Home Matters project, you can visit their social media pages. You can find them on Facebook at HomeMattersSMTX and on twitter @homemattersSMTX.

When Feb. 28 arrives, they are required to remove all their social media that pertains to this study & competition, and are then required to send their completed case study to the PRSSA.

This group of Texas State students hopes that by starting a conversation in the community, those that are in need in San Marcos, will learn more about our local resources that can help them find a home.

“Home isn’t just this building that you live in. It’s not four walls and a roof that you go home to every night,” Londene said, “It’s where you can prosper, where you can grow and you can thrive and you can learn.”