Housing program for single moms, who are students, searches for tenants

Since 1989, Project Chance, a non-profit organization in Montreal, has been working to transform the lives of single mothers pursuing full-time post-secondary education while raising their children by offering subsidized housing.

With a mission to break the cycle of poverty, the organization has provided stability for these women until they are ready to graduate.

But now, in the midst of a housing crisis, Project Chance is facing an unexpected challenge: empty units. Right now, they are seeking visibility to reach women who may desperately need this program but who may simply not know of its existence.

“I found Project Chance through a social worker, and I wanted a better life for myself and my boy. So, I ended up going back to university and I lived there for many years,” said Misoo Chung, a former resident & board member of Project Chance.

“I’m hoping that some of the women out there can learn about us and decide to think about the long term, building a future for themselves and their children and go back to school.”

At the moment, they’ve got ten empty units in their building located in downtown Montreal, near many of the university campuses, and they’re looking for tenants to fill those units.

“Yeah, so we’re trying to be more active, because we know renting is very challenging out there for everybody,” said Chung. “We want to make sure we provide this opportunity to as many potential residents as possible.”

Tiffany Brophy-Cortez, a full-time student & resident at Project Chance, says, “Living at Project Chance has been absolutely life-changing. Not only have I been able to get into McGill School of Social Work while I’ve been here, but I’ve been able to maintain a 4.0 GPA, and hopefully going to be applying for my masters.”

“As long as you’re in full time studies, you can be living at Project Chance. There’s women here working on the PhDs who have graduated with PhDs. So, the only real requirement is to be a single mother with at least 50 per cent custody of your child enrolled in CEGEP or university full-time studies.”

Adding, “There’s also very cool perks of living here. So, bi-weekly we have a food bank that comes to the building for all residents, so that’s a huge perk. We also get like just at the holidays, we get some extra like, gives that check or people give donations for presents for the children and the mothers and it’s just a really nice community to be a part of.”

Project Chance charges 25 per cent of the applicant’s income for rent, and they offer additional services such as learning how to budget; they even have a psychiatric nurse who is available to provide one-on-one mental health support.

“To apply to Project Chance … you send a bunch of different documents, proof of income, proof of full-time studies, proof of custody, and they will give you an interview. You also have to send a CV with your academic visions,” said Brophy-Cortez.

Applications for Project Chance can be sent to their email: projectchancefoundation@gmail.com