Homeless & Unaccompanied Youth Services
The McKinney-Vento Act defines homeless children as "individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence." The purpose of this program is to ensure student success at school: academically, socially, emotionally and with their personal safety.
The act provides examples of children who would fall under this definition:
- Children and youth sharing housing due to loss of housing, economic hardship or a similar reason
- Children and youth living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camp grounds due to lack of alternative accommodations
- Children and youth living in emergency or transitional shelters
- Children and youth abandoned in hospitals
- Children and youth whose primary nighttime residence is not ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation (e.g. park benches, etc)
- Children and youth living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations
- Unaccompanied children and youth not living with their legal guardian(s)
- Migratory children and youth living in any of the above situations
Under the McKinney-Vento Act, students:
-
May enroll in school immediately, even if they lack documents normally required for enrollment
- Attend classes while the school gathers missing documents
- May attend the school they were last enrolled in (school of origin), even if the child has been forced to relocate
- Be provided with transportation to and from the school of origin
- Receive all the same educational services other students receive
- Participate in before and after school programs, even if the child cannot pay
- Receive counseling if requested
- Are entitled to free breakfast and lunch
- Participate in special education, bilingual vocational and gifted programs if qualified
- Receive school supplies as needed
- Can qualify for extra academic support through Title I funding
- Can qualify for an evaluation for any disabilities
How To Qualify For Services:
