Student Housing Security Initiative

Affordable housing for college students is needed in Fort Collins.  

With a shortage of such housing, a number of students are housing insecure or homeless. LuMin is working to respond to the need in our community.  Our initiatives for 2023 include:

• Providing free access to newly installed washers and dryers at LuMin so that students can wash their clothing

  • Low-income students can schedule a time to bring over laundry to do their wash and have access to snacks, showers, and WiFi while they wait.

• Opening up our chapel as free storage for students who find themselves displaced during the semester

  • Short-term housing insecurity often happens during the semester for students who are just getting by on a couch or living out of their car and that option runs out.  Since we are lucky enough to have a building with room to spare, we open that space up as storage if a student needs to put their personal property somewhere during a transition in housing.

• Providing reduced and subsidized housing to students for the 2023-2024 school year and beyond

  • For the 2023-2024 school year, we have placed twenty-one financially challenged students in affordable housing and are providing additional assistance with a grant to subsidize the cost of rent.  In addition, we will provide mentors from the Fort Collins community, establish peer support groups, and help connect students to other assistance through a social work intern.  

• After several years of studying student housing insecurity and offering limited support, we hope to:

  • identify, recognize and listen to this often invisible population; 

  • surround students with peer and community support;

  • continue to learn from students what is needed to respond to long-term student housing insecurity, and;

  • continue to partner with Colorado State University and the Fort Collins community in responding to this need.