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UW Professor Talks Strategy In Fight Against Homelessness

ELAINE THOMPSON / AP
Tents sit under a Seattle overpass.

Seattle leaders unveiled a package of reports Sept. 8 filled with recommendations on how to solve the city's homelessness crisis. 

One theme was the need for a strategic shift in the way the city's service providers get people into permanent homes. Consultants hired by the city advised taking funds from programs that offer "transitional housing" and investing more in a newer strategy known as "rapid re-housing." 

Rachel Fyall, a professor at the University of Washington's Evans School of Public Policy and Governance, spoke to knkx reporter Will James about what those terms mean and what research reveals about their effectiveness. 

"This shift has been happening for some time nationally and somewhat locally as well, but these reports certainly seem to put the nail in the coffin for transitional housing," she said. 

Will James is a former KNKX reporter and was part of the special projects team, reporting and producing podcasts such as Outsiders and The Walk Home.