Lafayette Transitional Housing Center honored with Purdue’s community partner award

The Lafayette Transitional Housing Center has received Purdue's Dr. JoAnn L. Miller Exemplary Community Partner Award for 2017. 

This award recognizes local nonprofits, schools or government units that contribute to the educational growth of Purdue students by providing volunteer and service-learning opportunities. The award carries a $1,000 cash prize, and it will be presented to the organization Thursday (Jan. 18) during halftime of the women’s basketball game against Northwestern at Mackey Arena. 

The LTHC Homeless Services is a nonprofit organization that works to develop housing, offer supportive services and foster self-sufficiency for the homeless, particularly families with children, in the Lafayette community. The organization was founded in 1989.

The nomination of the housing center came from Trinity Overmyer, graduate student in the College of Liberal Arts, and the students in her multimedia writing course. The students conducted focus groups with clients of the organization and gathered data and pictures of obstacles faced by those transitioning from homelessness using the services of the LTHC. Students were provided with the opportunity to learn about qualitative data research methods, as well as with the opportunity to interact personally with individuals affected by homelessness.

“Working with LTHC allowed me to help my community in ways that I could never have done without their assistance,” said Clayton Eller, Purdue student. “This project allowed me to contribute to an organization that actively works to change its clients’ lives for the better.”

Previous winners of the Exemplary Community Partner Award include the Hanna Community Center, the Drug Free Coalition of Tippecanoe County, Food Finders Food Bank and the Wabash Center.

In January 2015, the award was renamed in memory of JoAnn L. Miller, who was associate dean of engagement and head of the School of Interdisciplinary Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and worked passionately to further engagement with the community by Purdue students, faculty and staff. Miller died Dec. 25, 2014.   

Writer: Olivia Crouse, ocrouse@purdue.edu