Campus & Community Resources
24/7 Helpline (2-1-1) — Call 2-1-1 to get connected.
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Shelters & Emergency Housing — Includes community shelters, transitional housing, domestic violence shelters, youth/runaway shelters, supervised living for older youth, maternity homes, and more.
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Housing Search & Navigation — Assistance locating available housing, including low-cost rental listings, Section 8 / voucher-based housing options, and help with rental deposits.
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Staying Housed — Support to keep your housing stable: rent or mortgage payment help, landlord/tenant counseling, mediation, and tenant rights advice.
CalFresh
CalFresh, known federally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, provides monthly food benefits to individuals and families with low-income and provides economic benefits to communities. CalFresh is the largest food program in California and provides an essential hunger safety net.
If you would like help applying, please email hawksnest@sccollege.edu to set a one-on-
one appointment. The appointment will take place at Santiago Canyon College.
Hawk's Nest
Hawk’s Next: Basic Needs Center
Mission: The Hawk's Nest Food Pantry supports all credit and noncredit SCC students' academic potential, creativity, as well as their personal and professional growth by providing basic needs support services for students.
How Does it Work?Our Hawk’s Market, formerly hawks nest food pantry, provides perishable and non-perishable groceries. We provide fresh produce when available. To participate, all you need to do is come to A-107, give us your student ID number, and you can shop for freegroceries. In addition to groceries, we provide hygiene products, assist with CalFresh applications, and support students experiencing housing insecurity during our office hours. We just launched our Hawk’s Closet, a career closet where we give free donated professional clothing. All you need to do is schedule an appointment to shop.
How Often Can I Visit?To serve as many students as possible, students may only pick up groceries once a week.
What If I'm Not Available?Please email us at hawksnest@sccollege.edu to check if we can accommodate a time that works.
Independent Living Program (ILP)
The Independent Living Program (ILP) helps foster youth in California get ready for life on their own. If you’re between 16 and 21 and have been in foster care (or certain guardianship or tribal care), you may qualify for free support and resources. ILP offers help with important life skills like budgeting, cooking, finding a job, getting an education, and finding a safe place to live. Each county runs its own ILP, so the services may look a little different depending on where you live—but the goal is the same: to help you build confidence, independence, and a strong future after foster care.
Orangewood Foundation
https://orangewoodfoundation.org/
The Orangewood Foundation is a Santa Ana, California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 1981 that supports foster care, at-risk, and community youth (ages 16-25) in Orange County. It provides comprehensive resources for independence, focusing on housing, education, employment, and life skills to prevent homelessness and help youth reach their potential.
The Orangewood Resource Center, or ORC for short, is a drop-in center for young people ages 18-24. It can also be your first step in applying for other programs that you might be eligible for from Orangewood Foundation.
Location: 1575 E. 17th St, Santa
Ana, CA 92705
Housing Programs
Housing Independence Living Program (H-ILP) | Orangewood Foundation Housing Programs
The Housing Independent Living Program (H-ILP) is run by the Orangewood Foundation to help foster youth who have a FYI (Foster Youth to Independence) housing voucher secure safe housing and gain independence. If you qualify (ages 18–24, current or former foster youth in Orange County), H-ILP will work with you for up to three years, providing coaching, support, and resources in housing, education, employment, life skills, and wellness. Orangewood helps with everything from completing your voucher application and finding a place to live, to budgeting, resume building, and accessing mental health or medical support. They also offer a Housing Stabilization Fund that can help with move-in fees, utilities, furniture, and emergency housing costs (subject to eligibility). You’ll also be asked to set goals, meet regularly with your Orangewood team, and look for permanent housing during your stay.
Other transitional housing opportunities:
- Lighthouse: Safe, stable housing for survivors of human trafficking. This survivor-centered program provides safe, confidential housing, ongoing support, and trauma-informed care for young women ages 18–25.
- Casa de Rosemary: Housing, community, & parenting support for single moms. Casa de Rosemary offers up to two years of transitional housing for single mothers ages 18-22 with a child who is 0-5 years old.
Child Development Center
The Child Development Center offers a full day toddler and preschool program that serves children from 18 months to 5 years of age. They open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Located on the campus of Santiago Canyon College, the large park-like setting has plenty of space for children to run and explore while also providing opportunities to garden.
Crayons, books, and blocks are just a few of the essential tools used to meet the children's needs and provide an individualized curriculum. Our indoor learning environment engages children in active learning activities.
Please call (714) 628-4890 to arrange an appointment for a tour! To apply, visit the Child Development Center on-campus or visit this webpage: