Basic Needs Resources

For Highline Students

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If you are experiencing homelessness, food insecurity, financial hardship or are in need of other basic needs support, please utilize the resources below.

Food

Housing

Healthcare

Paying for College

Mental Health

Financial Assistance

Childcare

Domestic Violence & Safety

Additional Resources:

Food:

Des Moines Food Bank: http://www.myfoodbank.org/
- Des Moines Area Food Bank serves anyone with a Highline College ID
Find a list of food banks in South King County on this page. South King County Food Coalition: http://www.skcfc.org/member-food-banks.html

Housing:

Students who are taking 6 credits or more, and who are experiencing homelessness can meet with a Benefits Hub Coach to apply for our housing funding. Schedule an appointment right away as this process can take a couple weeks. Be sure to select Highline College on this link. https://benefitshub.setmore.com/
Students who are experiencing homelessness (including living in your car, a shelter, couch surfing, and not on a lease), and students who are at risk of homelessness, or recently housed are eligible for supports through our SHoRe Program (Student Housing & Retention). Resources include backpacks with school supplies, technology support, emergency short term housing stays, and more. FiIl out this screening form and Saido Alinur will contact you within one business day: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1HrJxFWeHTCbqaHZn3enTltF11AnlgZTNXCVwWBa60y0/edit
Our WISH (While in School Housing) program (space limited) is in partnership with King County Housing Authority and provides Section 8 Vouchers to eligible students. Information located here: https://supportcenter.highline.edu/wish/
King County Housing Authority: https://www.kcha.org/
Seattle Housing Authority: https://www.seattlehousing.org/
Renton Housing Authority: https://www.rentonhousing.org/

Healthcare:

HealthPoint Midway Health Center: https://www.freeclinics.com/det/wa_98198_healthpoint-midway-health-center
Neighborhood House: https://nhwa.org/lookinside/program.php?program=Community+Health
Sea Mar Community Health Centers: https://www.seamar.org/services-king.html

Child Care:

COVID-19 Resources:

Highline College COVID-19 Information and Resources: https://www.highline.edu/covid19/
- COVID-19 Self-Screening for Students: https://www.highline.edu/covid19/self-screening-for-students/

Highline Access Services:

Support and Assistance for Students with Disabilities, with Campus and Classroom Accommodations: https://access.highline.edu/

Paying for College:

Professional-Technical/Workforce Programs Funding: https://workforce.highline.edu/
Scholarships: https://financialaid.highline.edu/types-of-financial-aid/scholarships/
Academic Emergency Funding Form from the Highline College Foundation: https://supportcenter.highline.edu/benefits-hub/

Career and Job Opportunities:

Highline College Career and Student Employment (CASE): https://studentemployment.highline.edu/
WorkSource Seattle-King County Employment Resource: https://www.worksourceskc.org/covid-19-employment-resources

Legal Resources:

King County Bar Association https://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Free-Legal-Assistance
Tacoma Pro Bono (Family Law, Housing Justice, Legal Clinics, Native American Legal Aid): https://tacomaprobono.org/
Eastside Legal Assistance Project: https://elap.org/
Housing Justice Project: https://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Free-Legal-Assistance/Housing-Justice-Project
Tenant Law Center https://ccsww.org/get-help/specialized-services/tenant-law-center/
Legal Counsel for Youth and Children (LCYC): http://www.lcycwa.org/
The Unemployment Law Project: https://unemploymentlawproject.org/
Immigration Legal Resources:
- NW Immigrants’ Rights Project: https://www.nwirp.org/
- El Centro de la Raza – Immigration Rights: https://www.centrolegal.org/immigrants-rights/
- Colectiva Legal del Pueblo (Immigration, domestic violence support): https://colectivalegal.org/
- Refugee Women’s Alliance (domestic violence support, Naturalization and Immigration, counseling: https://www.rewa.org/
Do you need help with any of the following legal issues? Such as:
- Disputing traffic tickets
- Lemon law (consumer protection from fraud and defective products, such as vehicles)
- Working with debt collectors
- LegalShield issues
- Voting rights
- ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union)
- Choosing a lawyer after an accident/Personal injury
- Insurance concerns
- Excessive police force issues
- Criminal law exposure
- Drug court diversion programs
- Free criminal defense attorney
- Finding free legal clinics
- If so, free legal consultations are available; please contact benefitshub@highline.edu, and they will connect you with one-on-one legal consulting.

The Benefits Hub

The United Way Benefits Hub at Highline College is here to help with everyday services and financial tools to keep you in school.

Benefits Hub Services Include:

Help paying for groceries
Utility bill assistance
Access to food
Paying for the bus
Mental Health & Wellness Referrals
Free tax preparation
Financial coaching
Financial aid application assistance
Emergency financial grants
Housing supports
Legal Counsel Referrals
Signing up for Apple Health
Assistance with past due rent or moving costs

Visit https://supportcenter.highline.edu/benefits-hub/ for details on how to schedule with a one-on-one appointment or drop in the Zoom Lobbies.

Community Resources

The Highline College campus works in partnership with several community organizations to help meet students' basic needs. As such, and recognizing that not all students are currently located close to the Highline campus and may be located closer to community-based organizations that provide basic needs support, students are encouraged to visit Support Center Website. https://supportcenter.highline.edu/community-partners/.

Dial 211

By simply dialing 211, you can be referred, and sometimes connected, to appropriate agencies and community organizations.

211 works a bit like 911. Calls to 211 are routed by the local telephone company to a local or regional calling center. The 211 center’s referral specialists receive requests from callers, access databases of resources available from private and public health and human service agencies, match the callers’ needs to available resources, and link or refer them directly to an agency or organization that can help.

Types of Referrals Offered by 211

Basic Human Needs Resources – including food and clothing banks, shelters, rent assistance, and utility assistance.
Physical and Mental Health Resources – including health insurance programs, Medicaid and Medicare, maternal health resources, health insurance programs for children, medical information lines, crisis intervention services, support groups, counseling, and drug and alcohol intervention and rehabilitation.
Work Support – including financial assistance, job training, transportation assistance and education programs.
Access to Services in Non-English Languages - including language translation and interpretation services to help non-English-speaking people find public resources (Foreign language services vary by location.)
Support for Older Americans and Persons with Disabilities – including adult day care, community meals, respite care, home health care, transportation and homemaker services.
Children, Youth and Family Support – including child care, after-school programs, educational programs for low-income families, family resource centers, summer camps and recreation programs, mentoring, tutoring and protective services.
Suicide Prevention – referral to suicide prevention help organizations. Callers can also dial the following National Suicide Prevention Hotline numbers which are operated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:
- DIAL 988
- 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255)
- 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433)
- 1-888-SUICIDE (1-888-784-2433)
- 1-877-SUICIDA (1-877-784-2432) (Spanish)

FindHelp.org

Students can also find support in the local community through going to FindHelp.org. This free website is a reliable, holistic, and user-friendly system designed to help individuals get connections to food, housing, transportation, and other resources.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you have any of the questions below? If so, visit https://supportcenter.highline.edu/faq/.

What resources are offered at the Highline Support Center?
What is Admissions?
How can I attend the new student orientation?
How do I set up myHighline student account?
I forgot my Highline ID/password, how can I find it?
How do I register for classes?
What is an entry code?
Why do I need an entry code?
How do I get an entry code?
How can I check my student e-mail on my personal devices such as phone, iPad, or laptop?
What is placement and do I need it?
What is MyMathTest?
How can I find instructors’ office hours?
What is I-BEST program?
What is Jumpstart program?
What is WASFA?
How can I apply for FAFSA?
Can I use printer or copy machine on campus?
What is the Financial Aid portal?
How can I get a work-study job?
How can I apply the Financial Aid?
What is Women’s Programs?

And if you have questions about ctcLink, including what it is and how to access it, please visit this link: https://www.highline.edu/ctclink/students/

Direct Highline Contacts

Highline College Support Center:

Email: benefitshub@highline.edu
Phone: (206) 592-3802

Highline College Counseling Center:

Send a Message: https://counseling.highline.edu/contact-us/
Phone: (206) 592-3353

Key Terms

Basic Needs

The fundamental, minimum requirements necessary for a decent standard of life and physical, mental, and social well-being. In the context of this report, we refer primarily to food and housing, but basic needs may also include issues such as safety and security, sanitation, access to clean water, and clothing.

Food Insecurity

The state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. ‘Anxiety over food access’ is considered marginal food insecurity while outright ‘hunger’ and ‘not eating for an entire day due to lack of resources for food’ is a more extreme manifestation. “Low” and “very low” food security levels are defined as “food insecurity” by the USDA, and “marginal” and “high” food security levels are not typically considered “food insecurity”. The word ‘hunger’ is sometimes used colloquially to describe food insecurity.

Housing Insecurity

Variably defined as having difficulty paying rent, having frequent moves, living in overcrowded conditions, or doubling up with friends and relatives. In the college context, instability may take the form of frequent moving of residence due to lack of resources or eviction, or temporary or chronic couch surfing. Homelessness refers to lack of a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, characterized by living in motels, hotels, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations or living in a car or other location not designed for being a residence.