April 3rd, 2026
Boston, MA – Last week, Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law & Justice held an orientation webinar focused on increasing the accessibility, reach, and use of the Massachusetts Homeless Youth Handbook, a practical legal resource covering 20 key topics affecting young people across the Commonwealth. The handbook was developed in 2021 in partnership with Baker McKenzie and has since undergone two revisions to keep the information current. The no-cost session marked the first in a series of online tools that will form a centralized hub, serving as a companion resource to the Handbook and strengthening connections with educators, service providers, and advocates working with youth.
The webinar welcomed participants including service providers, educators, advocates, youth, and community members from across the state. Participants engaged in hands activity designed to familiarize them with the handbook and demonstrate how it can be used in real-world situations. For example, attendees were asked to locate the answer to the question: “What phone number can I call if I need to know where I can get food resources near me?” Using the handbook, participants identified the information in the Public Benefits chapter, which directs individuals to the Project Bread Hotline at (800) 645-8333 or by dialing 211. The activity helped illustrate how the handbook can serve as a practical tool for quickly finding critical information.
Youth experiencing homelessness often face overlapping legal and systemic challenges that make access to reliable information especially critical. Approximately 1 in 10 young people ages 18–25 experience homelessness over the course of a year, yet only about 50% of eligible applicants receive legal assistance, highlighting significant gaps in access to support and resources for young people navigating complex systems.
The Massachusetts Homeless Youth Handbook was developed to help address these challenges by providing accessible guidance on critical topics such as education, healthcare, housing, juvenile justice, immigration, and mental health. Each chapter is designed to be practical and easy to navigate, empowering youth and those who support them to better understand their rights and access essential services.