(Miami-Dade County, FL) -- The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded Miami-Dade Public Housing Agency (MDPHA) a Resident Opportunities and Self Sufficiency (ROSS) Service Coordinator Grant of $720,000 for a three-year period. The grant provides funding to local public housing authorities to hire and maintain service coordinators who will assess the needs of residents and coordinate services available in the community, including employment opportunities and other supportive services, with the goal of achieving economic independence and housing self-sufficiency.

According to HUD, "the program works to promote the development of local strategies to coordinate the use of assistance under the Public Housing program with public and private resources, for supportive services and resident empowerment activities. These services should enable participating families to increase earned income, reduce or eliminate the need for welfare assistance, make progress toward achieving economic independence and housing self-sufficiency or, in the case of elderly or disabled residents, help improve living conditions and enable residents to age-in-place."