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Nonprofits and students urge Multnomah County to prioritize rental assistance and culturally specific behavioral-health services
Summary
Several public commenters urged the Multnomah County Board to prioritize long-term rental assistance and funding for culturally specific behavioral-health programs and workforce pathways; an immigrant-refugee nonprofit sought county support to acquire a resilience hub.
At Thursday27s Multnomah County Board meeting, nonprofit leaders and a Portland State University student used the public-comment period to press the county for sustained investment in rental-assistance programs and culturally specific behavioral-health services.
Jamal Dar, founder and executive director of the African Youth and Community Organization (IEKO), thanked commissioners for prior support and described the organization27s work on youth workforce development, transportation and a planned culturally specific resilience hub he called the Dream Center. "Without county NovA funding we will not be able to purchase the building," Dar said, and he asked the board to continue funding partnerships and certification pathways for peer-support specialists.
Diana Collins, a Portland State University student, urged the county to prioritize preventative strategies — notably long-term regional rental assistance — rather than relying chiefly on congregate shelters. She cited research showing rental assistance reduces inflow into homelessness systems and warned of long waitlists for housing vouchers.
Akina Sharief, director of operations, training and learning at Ako/IEKO, described the group27s Shifa Healing program, a culturally and linguistically specific behavioral-health and substance-use recovery initiative that aims to build workforce pathways with community colleges and to offer a peer-support specialist curriculum awaiting Oregon Health Authority approval.
Speakers urged the board to align county investment with prevention and culturally specific, community-based services rather than temporary shelter alone. Commissioners acknowledged the comments and said staff will continue to explore how to coordinate rental-assistance strategies and workforce-development partnerships.
What to watch: whether the county advances additional, targeted rental-assistance funding and whether it uses local NovA or other funds to secure and support culturally specific resilience hubs and peer-support training.
