Serving Our Youth 2015 - The Needs and Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Youth Experiencing Homelessness

Aug 27, 2026

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Serving Our Youth 2015 synthesizes results from the 2014 LGBTQ Homeless Youth Provider Survey of 138 service-provider agencies conducted from March to June 2014. The report examines how sexual-minority and gender-minority youth experience homelessness and how providers support them, updating earlier findings from a 2011 survey. Provider estimates show disproportionate representation of LGBTQ youth among those experiencing homelessness, including differences by sexual orientation and gender identity. The report also highlights longer homelessness duration and greater mental and physical health needs among LGBTQ youth versus non-LGBTQ youth.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages22

Reading Time55 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Survey purpose and update from 2011

Overrepresentation by sexual orientation

Overrepresentation by gender identity

Demographic differences among LGBTQ clients

Duration of homelessness and health needs

Similarities and differences between LGBQ and transgender youth

SERVING OUR YOUTH 2015: The Needs and Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Youth Experiencing Homelessness Soon Kyu Choi Bianca D. M. Wilson Jama Shelton Gary Gates June 2015 ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATES Funder Authoring Organizations [www.ThePaletteFund.org](www.ThePaletteFund.org) The Palette Fund honors the legacy of Rand Harlan Skolnick through collaborative grantmaking and programs that value human rights and education. The Foundation focuses on Nutrition & Wellness, Patient Navigation, and Queer Youth. Rand committed his heart and soul to his philanthropic work throughout his life, and The Palette Fund seeks to continue and grow his pioneering vision. [www.TrueColorsFund.org](www.TrueColorsFund.org) The True Colors Fund works to end homelessness among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, creating a world in which young people can be their true selves. Through a broad continuum of public education & engagement, advocacy & public policy, youth collaboration, research, and community building programs, the True Colors Fund is focused on creating systemic change to holistically address LGBT youth homelessness. [williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu](williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu) The Williams Institute advances sexual orientation and gender identity law and public policy through rigorous, independent research and scholarship, and disseminatesit to judges, legislators, policymakers, media and the public. A national think tank at the UCLA School of Law, the Williams Institute produces high quality research with real-world relevance. 2 | Serving Our Youth 2015 Additional Support Provided By Runaway and Homeless Youth Training and Technical Assistance Center National Safe Place About the Authors Soon Kyu Choi is a Policy Analyst at the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. She conducts research on a diverse set of topics relevant to LGBT health and well-being. Bianca D.M. Wilson is the Rabbi Barbara Zacky Senior Scholar of Public Policy at the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. She studies the relationships between social status (race, sexual orientation, gender identity, etc.) and well-being among LGBT youth and women. Jama Shelton is the Deputy Executive Director of the True Colors Fund. She conducts research, trains service providers, and implements programs pertaining to issues relevant to LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness. Gary J. Gates is the Blachford-Cooper Distinguished Scholar and Research Director at the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. He studies the demographic and economic characteristics of the LGBT population. Suggested Citation Choi, S.K. , Wilson, B.D.M. , Shelton, J. , & Gates, G. (2015) . Serving Our Youth 2015: The Needs and Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Youth Experiencing Homelessness. Los Angeles: The Williams Institute with True Colors Fund. Serving Our Youth 2015 | 3 Executive Summary This report summarizes findings from the 2014 LGBTQ Homeless Youth Provider Survey, a survey of 138 youth homelessness human service agency providers conducted from March 2014 through June 2014 designed to better understand homelessness among LGBTQ youth. This report updates a similar report based on a survey conducted in 2011 (Durso & Gates, 2012) . This new survey was designed to obtain greater detail on the similar and distinct experiences of sexual minority (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning) and gender minority (transgender) youth experiencing homelessness. Recruitment was focused on agencies whose primary purpose is the provision of services to youth experiencing homelessness. Similar to findings from the previous survey, a majority of providers of homeless youth services reported working with LGBTQ youth. • Estimates of the percent of LGBTQ youth accessing their services indicate overrepresentation of sexual and gender minority youth among those experiencing homele

FAQs

What data source does Serving Our Youth 2015 use?

The report summarizes findings from the 2014 LGBTQ Homeless Youth Provider Survey of 138 youth homelessness service agency providers conducted from March 2014 through June 2014.

How does the 2014 survey improve on the 2011 survey?

It is designed to capture greater detail on both similar and distinct experiences of sexual-minority and gender-minority youth experiencing homelessness.

What key findings are reported about LGBTQ youth served by providers?

Providers report overrepresentation of LGBTQ youth among those experiencing homelessness and describe LGBTQ youth as homeless longer with more mental and physical health problems than non-LGBTQ youth.

Aug 27, 2026

Upload by Jacob