The growth of youth homelessness in the United States signifies equitable social welfare and social policy concerns. This paper studies the policy process, identifies the issue as bottom‐up agenda‐setting, and analyzes the socioeconomic and political aspects that contribute to homelessness from evidenced‐based research. This article assesses the equality, effectiveness, and unintended consequences of two initiatives, the Basic Center Program and the Education for Homeless Kids and Children Program, which aim to provide educational resources to homeless youth and children. This study presents four policy alternatives and makes policy recommendations for enhanced crime intervention, increased mental health services, and strengthened accountability systems using the five‐step policy evaluation framework.