As the Natrona County School District's student advocate for the homeless, Greta Hinderliter finds herself working out of her Honda CR-V more often than at a desk in her office.

She has recorded at least 250 homeless youth in Natrona County schools this school year, and as she pointed out, it's been warm enough to sleep in cars. Last year, the district served about 300 students for the entire school year.

"We've got a long road ahead of us until June," Hinderliter told district staff and representatives from social services providers Thursday morning. "Right now, I'm a one-woman show."

That could change with the addition of a centralized location for homeless and runaway students and their families. The center would meet with students, assess their needs and refer them to agencies and services that already exist in the community, according to Kim Ibach, coordinator for Natrona Community Outreach.

The one-stop shop would make sure students have clothes, food and a safe place to stay outside of school. Mercer House and the school district's Parent Resource Center will play a huge role in the center. In addition to housing services and food pantries, services might include professionals who donate their time -- for example, a car mechanic could donate his labor one day each month. Partner organizations would be able to focus on providing their services instead of finding clients, Ibach said.

The first priority is to find a space conveniently located to bus lines and services. If a space can be identified this fall, the plan is to open the center in June. Until then, the focus is fundraising, developing community contacts and adding services to the Parent Resource Center.

The idea comes from the Maslow Project in Medford, Ore., which Mary Ferrell began five years ago. The Maslow project is an independent, nonprofit organization but founded by the school district.

"We were seeing that our kids had so many needs to be addressed before they even get to school," Ferrell said. "These kids need to have a place to go that's centrally located, community-based and is an open door to them to address those kinds of fundamental needs."

The Maslow Project sees about 2,000 visits each year, many from people who are not homeless. While the center in Casper would focus on homeless youth and families, Ibach said the partner services would benefit many non-homeless families.

"The center will not be stigmatized," she said. "We want this to be a place where kids and families feel comfortable walking in, using our services and making their lives easier."

Hinderliter told the possible future partners that she recently met with a third-grade student living in a camper with 14 people. The girl asked Hinderliter if she finished high school. Hinderliter said yes, and that she went to college at the University of Wyoming.

"Do you want to go to the University of Wyoming some day?" Hinderliter asked.

The girl said "no," and she didn't want to go to Casper College either. Hinderliter asked what she had in mind. The girl said she picked out a college: Princeton University.

"The seed has been planted for setting that goal," Hinderliter said. "And no matter what the family dynamic is, we can get there."

Reach education reporter Jackie Borchardt at (307) 266-0593 or at jackie.borchardt@trib.com. Read her education blog at tribtown.trib.com/reportcard.