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I've directed a day shelter for at-risk and homeless teens in Salem for about 15 years.  Regarding legally moving away from parents, that would mean emancipation which has pretty rigid requirements such as a teen must be at least 16, able to support themselves, live on their own and have proof of these things, such as stable employment.  They need to file with the courts, have a hearing and a judge will decide whether or not to grant the emancipation and the parents need to be notified.

One of the problems faced by homeless and runaway youth is the lack of alternative short- and long-term shelter or housing if reunification with the family is not an option.  Portland has a decent continuum of shelters but the rest of the state, especially in the rural areas have very little.  Even the few federally funded shelters have time limits around how long a teen can stay.  If we are unable to immediately place youths into a shelter or Job Corps, the longer they stay on the streets and become immersed into that culture, the more difficult it is for them to pull away.  And even so, it can take many months or even years for some of these discouraged and disenfranchised young people to become emotionally and physically stable enough to begin positively connecting with the realities of the larger adult world.

posted 3 years, 6 months ago
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