The mission of Northwest Georgia Housing Authority

by Amanda Petersen

ROME, Ga. – Isaac Barrett is one of the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority’s many success stories. He “graduated” from the authority’s Family Self-Sufficiency Program (FSS) in March of this year, striking out on his own and earning a paycheck.

Isaac Barrett

Four years ago, Barrett lived with his mom and without a job.

FSS is a voluntary program designed to help low-income residents find work and gain independence. Participants work with a counselor to set short- and long-term financial and employment goals, then residents and their counselors work toward those goals together.

Upon completing the FSS program, Scott had secured a job as an auto detail specialist with the Heritage Honda dealership and saved $7,000 in an FSS savings account.

FSS “helps you better yourself, said Barrett, who lives with his two children, ages 5 and 10. “You are going to set two or three goals, and you are going to reach your goals.”

Barrett and his children live in the same house the authority first helped them move into in West Rome. A public housing rental assistance agency, NWGHA relies on state and federal funds and grants. The authority oversees 900 public housing units in Rome and 100 apartments in Rockmart, according to its executive director, Sandra Hudson.

Now Barrett can afford the house himself.

“You don’t want to set weak goals,” he said. “Mine were to get a good job, raise my credit score and be able to pay a mortgage. You want to set powerful goals.”

How FSS works

Molly Majestic, FSS Coordinator for Northwest Georgia Housing Authority

FSS counselors help families establish a savings account, which program participants can access they have been welfare-free for at least 12 consecutive months, according to Molly Majestic, an FSS coordinator

Low-income individuals and families without homes can apply for housing from the authority online. They can apply either for a public home or for a Section 8 voucher, which allows them to rent any approved house in any location.

For the last year, the waiting list for NWGHA has been close to 3,000 people.

Melvin Scott, security investigations coordinator for Northwest Georgia Housing Authority

Before providing housing to an applicant, the authority does a background check on criminal history, past rental experiences and reported income, according to Melvin Scott, security and investigations coordinator for the authority.

If accepted, the applicant gets help from the authority moving into a housing configuration that meets that applicant’s needs at a cost that is based on that individual’s or family’s income. Applicants must report income at or below the federal poverty line in order to be eligible.

“If a participant in FSS started paying $50 for rent a month and then their income rose during their rental period, their rent would also increase,” Majestic said. “But the amount by which their rent increase goes into an interest-earning savings account for them to access after they leave the program.”

NWGHA multi-faceted

The authority also provides its residents with transportation, childcare, skills training classes in computers, GED education, and recreational opportunities. And the authority operates the House of Children Academies in Rome and Rockmart, Montessori-style pre-schools for children up to 6 years old.

Sandra Hudson, executive director of Northwest Georgia Housing Authority

Overseeing the authority’s services, programs and facilities is Sandra Hudson, a local legend in Rome and the authority’s executive director. She began with NWGHA as a volunteer in 1991 and since has worked her way up to the top position, which she has held since 2000. She said removing the stigma associated with public housing has been a priority for her and her team of 80 employees.

“I just care,” said Hudson, who is very hands-on. “For me this is really a mission, not necessarily a job. I’m here to help people. I can’t help people sitting in my office, and I can’t know what’s going on if I don’t drive by my sites.

Even trash on the grounds of an authority-owned property can rankle Hudson.

“This is not the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority,” she was heard to say after seeing debris on one of the authority’s Rome property.

“We talk about trash in the yard, and some people may overlook that and think that’s minor, but that attention to detail is what the renters notice,” Scott said. “It’s about changing the psychology of the person that’s renting the apartment so they also care about the property.”

Scott said that since Hudson became executive director, the authority and its reputation have been transformed, and that her attention to detail is a big reason why.

But “she doesn’t brag on herself,” he said. “She lets her work speak for itself.”