Homelessness is certainly a widespread problem that is in need of fixing, and this has been the case for an extended period of time. Since it has been the case for a long time, that means that it is not an issue that is easily resolved. However, I do believe that the Welcome Home idea could bring some relief and put a small dent in the overall problem.
The most obvious change to make is of course the length of time that the people can stay in the Welcome Home houses since one month would not be enough time to get them close to being back on their feet. Meanwhile, a stay of three months or longer would be a sufficient length of time for people to have attained some stability in their lives, even though of course there is always the possibility of them losing said stability once their lease is up. It would be a rough transition for the individuals to go from the Welcome Home houses to a typical homeless shelter, but this cannot be avoided unless Welcome Home were to house the people for a prolonged period of time, during which time they would only be able to help the same group of people and no one else.
As for screening homeless people for them to be allowed into the Welcome Home system, I agree that a drug test would be best, and a great point was brought up by a group member as to why drug testing people would be a good thing, even when there are relatively harmless things like marijuana that would make them fail. The justification was that the homeless people's new jobs would drug test them, and it is a great reason that validates drug testing people before accepting them into Welcome Home houses.
On the other hand, giving the people in the Welcome Home houses money does mean that they will have freedom to buy what they wish with said money. To prevent them from buying and doing drugs while they are in the Welcome Home system, it is my suggestion that the people should be randomly drug tested throughout their stay since they need to stay in a state in which they could pass a drug test for a job. As for general rules and rule enforcement in the Welcome Home community, I believe that a list of all the rules should be clearly stated along with the punishments that match the breaking of each rule.
From a less analytical standpoint, I enjoyed the presentation and especially liked that the exact costs were spelled out. It is a good idea that could potentially be implemented in the real world, and I feel that it addresses an important issue.
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