Homeless Students

This link explores St. Louis, Missouri Superintendent Tiffany Anderson's three lessons on how high-poverty communities can improve academic achievement by focusing on meeting students' needs inside and outside of the classroom.  According to U.S. Census data, nearly 44% of the community's households earn less than $24,999 annually and more than 90% of her district's students are eligible to receive free and reduced-priced meals.  Superintendent Anderson teamed up with an area St. Louis food bank to open a school-based food panty who, with the help of eight volunteer students, distribute fresh vegetables, canned goods, multigrain bread and pasta to 200 Jennings' stuggling families every two weeks.  Additional changes that have aided in increasing student performance include installing washers and dryers in schools, a free clothing store and home visits when a student misses more than two days of school consectively.

This webinar from the U.S. Department of Education dated April 10th, 2014, provides an overview of the new authority regarding the use of Title I, Part A, funds in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014.  In addition, the webinar addresses questions stemming from the recent U.S. Department of Education letter to State, Title I Directors and Homeless Education Coordinators concerning the new authority.

This report provides non-regulatory guidance for the McKinney-Vento program, which  addresses the following issues: whether children awaiting foster care placement are eligible for McKinney-Vento services, whether children displaced from their homes by a natural disaster are eligible for McKinney-Vento services and whether an LEA must provide transportation services to homeless children attending preschool.

This February 2011 article sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Instruction outlines exactly how teachers can help their homeless students on a daily, ongoing basis.  From stabilizing the student; basic needs to arranging assignments and materials for in class use instead of taking them home are just two ways a teacher can play a major role in towards the success of a homeless student.

This March 2014 Letter from Dr. Monique Chism, Director of Student Achievement and School Accountability Programs to State Title I and Homeless Education Coordinators outlines the use of Title I funds to serve homeless children and youth educational programs.  This information will also aid SEAs and LEAs to plan Title I activities for the 2014 - 2015 school year that benefit all students served by the program, including homeless children and youth.

This Department of Education website describes formula grants which are made to the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico based on each state’s share of Title I, Part A, funds. The outlying areas and the Bureau of Indian Affairs also receive funds. Among other things, the program supports an office for coordination of the education of homeless children and youths in each state, which gathers comprehensive information about homeless children and youths and the impediments they must overcome to regularly attend school. These grants also help SEAs ensure that homeless children, including preschoolers and youths, have equal access to free and appropriate public education (FAPE).

This Department of Education website provides useful information concerning programs administered by Student Achievement and School Accountability (SASA) programs and issues that are important to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Within this website, there are links to Title I, Part A  , Title III , School Improvement Grants, Homeless, Title I, Part D and Enhanced Assessment Grants. Information may be searched on a state-by-state basis.

This 2011 ERIC paper discusses some of the major concerns associated with the instructional process of our homeless children. The reader is provided with a brief overview of the prevalence of this population with statistics gathered from the National Center on Family Homelessness in 2009.  The number of homeless school children grew rapidly from 1.4 to 1.5 million children out of 3.5 million homeless people.

This United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH)'s website introduces and explains, 'Opening Doors', America's first comprehensive strategy to prevent and end homelessness. Opening Doors serves as a roadmap for joint action by the 19 USICH member agencies along with local and state partners in the public and private sectors beginning in 2010 with amendments added in 2012 and 2013.