A Napa County resident and biostatistician is leading an international effort to improve how communities measure unsheltered homelessness, with Napa County selected as an early pilot site.
Dr. Chris Barker, an adjunct faculty member at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health, is heading a project aimed at modernizing the statistical methods used in the federally required Point-in-Time count, which has faced ongoing concerns about data quality and accuracy.
According to Barker, the effort is supported by an informal international working group of 39 Ph.D.-level researchers from 10 countries and 12 disciplines. The group, formed in November 2025, brings together experts in homelessness data analysis and advanced statistical methods.
Napa County is expected to host a pilot study in early 2026. The study will involve trained community volunteers collecting data under standardized, privacy-protecting protocols, a press release issued Saturday noted.
Findings will be shared with federal, state and local officials, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, California state agencies, Napa County leadership, and the mayor of Napa.
As part of community outreach, Barker will give a public presentation on the project Jan. 6 at the Napa County Library, with a possible second session planned for Jan. 11.