Alice Tousignant is the Executive Director of Virginia Supportive Housing. She holds a Masters degree in Social Work Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Bachelor's degree in Sociology from the University of Rhode Island. Alice has over 30 years of experience in the fields of housing, homelessness and social services. She is the past Director of the Virginia Housing Coalition and the Associate Director of the Division of Housing at the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. She is a founder and past President of Emergency Shelter, Inc. and past President of the Richmond Community Development Alliance. She is a graduate of Harvard's NeighborWorks Achieving Excellence in Community Development Leadership program, and a recipient of the Fourth Annual Virginia S. Peters Housing Award. Alice currently serves on the Board of Area Congregations Together in Service (ACTS) and is the Board Chair of the Virginia Collation to End Homelessness.
Story of Hope…A Place To Start
Jane* is 47 years old. She was physically abused during her childhood and dropped out of high school in the 9th grade. Although she believes her mental illness started in her teens, her symptoms increased when she moved to Richmond in 1991.
About three years ago, everything changed for Jane. In her own words, she reports that within two weeks, her world “fell apart.” She lost her car, her children, and her housing and entered the homeless services system. Sometimes she stayed at a local shelter during the night, but had no where to go during the day. Other times she just stayed “here and there.” She talks openly about walking the streets during the day, trying to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. While she was on the streets, Jane’s hypertension worsened and she developed diabetes. Jane says that “the worst part of being homeless was only being able to shower once a week”. This went on for more than two years.
In April of 2008, Jane was referred to the A Place To Start (APTS) program. She immediately began receiving psychiatric services for her untreated mental illness and the APTS staff helped her secure permanent rental housing. In September of 2008, Jane signed her lease and moved into her new apartment. She pays 30% of her monthly income towards rent; the remainder of which is subsidized through a voucher from the Virginia Housing and Development Authority. She receives intensive services from the APTS team to help her address her mental health symptoms and maintain her housing. She is now receiving physical health care and is able to have visitation with her children. She has come a long way since entering the APTS program and looks forward to the progress she will make in the future.
*Names and certain identifying details have been changed to protect program participant’s privacy.
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