The Lynn Housing Authority and Neighborhood Development’s (LHAND) Continuum of Care Scholarship program for 2024 is now open, offering a $1,000 scholarship to a homeless or housing-insecure student.

The scholarship is part of the Lynn Continuum of Care, a collaborative effort by nonprofit organizations in the city attempting to end homelessness. 

“The mission of the Lynn CoC is to create and maintain a comprehensive and collaborative support system of housing resources to serve the homeless while working toward ending homelessness in the city,” LHAND Executive Assistant Kassandra Lopez said. “The Lynn CoC is responsive to the unique needs of various sub-populations, the changing nature of these needs, and to new community concerns. The Lynn CoC strives to meet the immediate and long-term needs of every adult and child who is homeless or at risk of becoming homeless to regain housing stability and improve the quality of life.”

Eligible applicants must be Lynn residents or homeless students attending Lynn high schools but living in another community in an emergency assistance shelter or sharing housing with others due to economic hardship, per the McKinney-Vento Act. The scholarship is available for seniors attending Lynn high schools planning to enroll in a two- or four-year higher-education program or an alternative career path for fall 2024.

Applicants must meet a specific criteria defining homelessness, according to a press release from LHAND. This includes lacking a “fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,” sharing housing with other people “due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reason,” living in a “motel, hotel, trailer park, or campground” because they do not have another accommodation, living in an emergency shelter or waiting for placement in foster care, living somewhere that is not normally used as an overnight residence, or being at risk for becoming homeless.

“You know, with the cost of higher education, every little bit helps,” Lynn Continuum of Care Coordinator Danielle Hoyt said. “And we’re happy to be able to make this possible for students.”

The application deadline is Feb. 23. Applications can be submitted by mail to Danielle Hoyt at 162 Curwin Circle, Lynn MA 01905 or by email to [email protected]. The scholarship will be presented at the Lynn Continuum of Care’s annual meeting on June 20.