Leadership Council

The Leadership Council is recruiting 3 new members: one to serve in the Healthcare and/or Disability Seat, and two to serve in System Partner seats. These are unpaid, volunteer positions, though people with lived experience of homelessness may be eligible for compensation.

• Healthcare and/or Disability Seat (Elected Seat) (1 opening):
  • This seat will act as a representative, advocate, and liaison for integrated healthcare systems and disability services as they pertain to the Action Plan to End Homelessness, ensuring that these services align with the HRS’ efforts and outcomes. This seat will understand that partnerships are necessary and important in contributing to the goal of ending homelessness, and will strive to be a subject matter expert in local healthcare and/or disability spaces, as they overlap with homelessness.
• System Partner Seats (Elected Seats) (2 openings):
  • These seats are intended to increase diverse stakeholder representation on the Leadership Council, and can be filled by individuals representing entities, agencies, or systems of care that have resources dedicated to people experiencing homelessness, participate in activities that heavily interact with people experiencing homelessness, and/or have expertise that would advance the implementation of a more just and equitable HRS. These seats ensure the alignment of these resources, activities, and expertise in the HRS.
  • Examples of System Partners include but are not limited to: non-government funders, business leaders, equity subject matter experts, folks working in criminal justice (law enforcement, local jails, etc.), folks from historically marginalized communities (veterans, youth, domestic violence survivors, LGBTQIA+), folks from faith-based communities (synagogues, mosques, rescue missions, etc.), and hospital workers.

All Leadership Council Members are expected to adhere to the Code of Conduct (PDF), which lays out specific expectations for decorum and attendance. In particular, Leadership Council Members are expected to attend public monthly meetings (from 12 – 2 p.m. on the first Monday of the month), as well as monthly closed executive sessions (11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. every third Monday of the month). They are also required to participate as a voting member of at least one Committee, most of which meet once a month for about an hour. Occasionally, there are items that require additional short-term attention, such as the Housing and Urban Development Department’s Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO), which will require an additional time commitment. Including meeting preparation, members should anticipate devoting between 5 to 15 hours per month on Leadership Council responsibilities. Terms for elected seats are a minimum of two years, and a maximum of three years.

The CoC has adopted the Board Selection Policy (PDF) to ensure that the Homelessness Response System (HRS) is composed of representatives of diverse racial backgrounds, lived experiences of homelessness, and diverse professional backgrounds from across and beyond the HRS.

The window for applications is now open, and applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. If you submitted an application before January 1, 2023, and are still interested in serving, please submit a new application. Our hope is to fill these seats by July 1, 2023.

The current Leadership Council members will evaluate and score candidates applying to fill vacant seats. Once the scored candidates have been selected, they will be added to a slate, and formally endorsed by the LC. The endorsed candidates will then be presented to the HRS stakeholders at an All Stakeholder Meeting, where they will be elected by majority vote.

Please submit your application at this link. Questions and requests for accommodations can be directed to Mariana Krueger (Governance Manager at ECHO) via email at marianakrueger@austinecho.org.

Communities across the U.S. receive funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through the Continuum of Care (CoC) program. These funds come with certain requirements, one of which is to create and facilitate a governing CoC Board to ensure the community works together toward solutions to end homelessness.

The CoC Board existed in Austin and Travis County as Membership Council until 2021. In 2020, our community initiated an extensive restructuring of the Board to center firsthand experience of homelessness and racial equity in both the composition and the guiding charge of the group. Stakeholders at our annual spring meeting approved the first slate of Leadership Council voting members in May 2021.

According to the CoC Board Selection Policy, Leadership Council voting seats are reserved as follows:

One of Leadership Council’s duties is to oversee the activities of Committees and Workgroups. Currently there are five standing committees that create workgroups as needed for specific Committee tasks. Unless otherwise noted, all Committee and Workgroup meetings are open to the public. Find links to join virtually on our Governance Calendar.

Leadership Council is responsible for developing, approving, and enforcing policies and procedures for projects that are funded through our local Continuum of Care (CoC). Some additional funders in our community, including the City of Austin, often require projects they fund to follow these same standards.

Written Standards Policies & Procedures