TEXAS YOUTH ORGANIZATION RECOGNIZES MAYOR’S LEGISLATIVE LEGACY

August 10, 2016 — HOUSTON – Mayor Sylvester Turner is being recognized today with a Distinguished Leadership award by the Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS) at its annual conference. TNOYS, which is dedicated to supporting critical services for Texas youth and their families, is presenting the award in recognition of Turner’s work on behalf of youth during his time in the Texas legislature.

 

“During his time in the legislature, and particularly the 2015 session, Sylvester Turner was a critical partner in making important advancements for youth,” said Christine Gendron, executive director of TNOYS. “Without him, the first count of homeless youth in Texas would never have gotten started, and it will be a big step in helping our state’s most vulnerable young people.”

 

Turner’s was instrumental during the 84^th Texas Regular Legislative Session in the passage of House Bill 679, which he authored to conduct a count of homeless youth in Texas, in order to help the state better understand their needs and identify opportunities to help them. TNOYS was contracted by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs to coordinate the process for the study, named Youth Count Texas!

 

Turner’s staff is accepting the award on his behalf during a reception at TNOYS’ 33^rd annual conference at the Westin Galleria, which is attended each year by hundreds of youth services professionals from across the state and the nation. The conference also included a full-day workshop devoted to gathering professionals interested in learning more about and weighing in on the process for the Youth Count Texas! study that Turner helped bring about.

 

Along with Turner, TNOYS is also recognizing other individuals and organizations in Texas who have shown leadership and dedication in serving youth, including the Community Youth Outreach Alliance of Montgomery County, Cathy Hamilton of San Antonio’s Threads for Teens, Yannin Marquez of Texas Panhandle Centers, and Mary Green of Harris County Protective Services. All awardees are highly deserving of the honor and embody the conference’s theme of being “Stronger Together.”

 

About Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS)

For more than 30 years, TNOYS has been the leading organization working to enhance services for Texas youth who are homeless, in foster care, or at risk, and to support the providers who care for them. The organization takes a comprehensive systems change approach to enhancing critical services for youth and families, focusing on policy advocacy, training and program development for providers, and youth engagement. To learn more about the organization, visitwww.tnoys.org.