LEICESTER, Mass. – The Central Mass Housing Alliance is seeing an “alarming” rise of families becoming homeless in Massachusetts.

The organization hopes the former campus of Becker College in Leicester can be part of the solution, where three dorm buildings are being converted into temporary emergency housing for families.

“The state is in a crisis around family homelessness right now,” said CMHA executive director Leah Bradley. “There’s more families that just can’t pay rent, and so we’re seeing a rise in the number of families that are experiencing homelessness, and because of that surge, the state is looking for places like college campuses that can be converted really quickly.”

Becker College shut its doors for good in 2021 and sold the Leicester portion of its campus to the town. Barrett Hall will be ready for families to move in next week, and the only work needed to get it ready was some cleaning, safety upgrades and new appliances.

“The other two dorms that we’re going to be using have a bit more extensive construction, you know, not major, but just some walls to be taken down so we can use it for this purpose,” Bradley said. “So those will be up and running mid-August or September, hopefully before children go back to school.”

The CMHA’s agreement with the state covers the shelters as a temporary site for the next year, but the organization is working with the town of Leicester to establish a long-term lease. With no relief in sight for cost-burdened renters, Bradley said it’s a necessity until families can have better options.

“We do have folks in our system right now who were living in Leicester and became homeless, so how do we keep those folks there?” she said. “A lot of times, they’re working, their children have their supports and friends they’d like to keep. What we’d rather have is affordable housing so folks don’t become homeless. How do we work with the municipalities to make sure that’s what’s happening across the state?”

Bradley said the CMHA will have staff on site 24/7, and a team of case managers and housing specialists will be working to help families find a more permanent home.