I would love to have the job they're proposing, but considering that homeless shelters are staffed by ex-cons, and people with no formal training after high school that lack the same resources as the librarians it's no surprise that the state doesn't want to pony up the money.

That being said, there are training courses out their that teach redirection and de-escalation strategies, but there's a certain level of familiarity with the client necessary for them to work. MANDT is the name of one of them; perhaps this kind of informal basic training would help at least a little. It's taught as a workshop that lasts a few days.