An Orientation to McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Fall 2015

Agenda  Introductions & Ground Rules  McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance  The Law  Who’s Homeless  Educational Rights of Homeless Children and Youth  Role of the Homeless Liaison Break  Homelessness in Massachusetts  Best Practices  Related Topics  Questions Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Introductions  Please include:  Your name,  District or Agency,  Your job/position, and  Your connection to homeless education. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Ground Rule  While we will look at some cases, and that can be a good way of learning to work with the law, we must maintain the children and families’ confidentiality.  For questions regarding specific cases please withhold identifying information or see us during the break or after this session. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 4

McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act, 2002  1987 Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance  1990 Amended to remove barriers to education  1994 McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance  2002 No Child Left Behind  So why do we even have this law? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Why McKinney-Vento?  Homelessness is a journey - not an overnight event – that has enormous impact on children and their education.  Homelessness effects  Whole family  School attendance  The ability to focus and learn  Educational gaps due to high mobility  Behavior. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Why McKinney-Vento?  Homelessness is often accompanied with  Food insecurity  Lack of medical, dental, and mental health services  Loss of connection to family, friends, community  Homelessness also impacts the teacher and the other students in the classroom.  Students coming and going  Could that happen to me? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

The Law  Definition - Who is Homeless?  Educational Rights of Students Who are Homeless  School Selection & Enrollment  Transportation  Nutrition  Equal Access & Comparable Services  Title I  See ESE Homeless Education Advisories on webpage  Role of the Homeless Liaison Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Definition: Who is Homeless? Anyone who lacks fixed regular and adequate nighttime residence.  This includes:  Shelters and motels  On the street: cars, parks, …  Doubling up due to Economic hardship, loss of housing or similar reason  Unaccompanied youth  Awaiting foster care Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Homeless? Case Study  Mary arrives at the Parent Information Center to enroll her second grader. She explains that she has just arrived in town and is living with her mother. She cannot prove residency and is unwilling to show you a lease.  Is she housed? Or homeless? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Educational Rights of Students Who are Homeless  School Selection & Enrollment  School of Origin  School last attended  School attended when student became homeless  Immediate Enrollment Locally  With or Without Documentation  Unaccompanied Youth  Enrolled means enrolled and attending Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Educational Rights of Students Who are Homeless  Documentation  Student Records  Residency  Shelter  Transportation  Shared Responsibility  Special Education  Nutrition  Free Lunch and Breakfast  Liaison verification Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Educational Rights of Students Who are Homeless  Equal Access & Comparable Services  School Courses, Events, Activities  Student Support Services  Preschool  Charter Schools, Vocational Schools, school choice  Title I  School-wide & Targeted Programs  Addressing the unique needs of homeless students Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Homeless? Case Study  What are Mary’s options?  What could the enrollment staff do?  What can the district ask from Mary? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

The Role of the Homeless Education Liaison  Identification  Building awareness is key  Professional development and training  School committee  Transportation  Communicating with your counterparts Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

The Role of the Homeless Education Liaison  Facilitate Enrollment & Dispute Resolution Process  Ensure Equal Access & Comparable Services  Referral to Community or Outside Services Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

The Role of the Homeless Education Liaison  Data Collection  Tracking for internal purposes 1.Support services 2.Transportation reimbursement  Annual ESE data collection 1.Students that are enrolled with you 2.Enter - do not delete Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

The Role of the Homeless Education Liaison  ESE contact  Current list of homeless liaisons on the ESE website.  Updated by the district’s Directory Amdinistrator  Please verify your contact information  Monitoring and Compliance  Desk Review  Visits Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Homeless? Case Study  What might Mary’s children need?  What could the homeless liaison do? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Break  Take a few minutes for you and a few minutes to say hello to a colleague! Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Journey Through Homelessness - Case Study  Tommy, a first grader, has made several trips to the school nurse’s office in the past month with vague complaints of not feeling good. Mom recently mentioned that her work hours were cut and the family is struggling. Today Tommy fell asleep in the nurse’s office saying they can’t sleep at home anymore.  What is going on? Could he be homeless?  What can the nurse do? What can you do? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Homelessness in Massachusetts  2014/15 School Year By the Numbers  Shelters5,070  Motels3,559  Doubled up7,620  Unaccompanied 851  Unsheltered 173  Awaiting Foster Care2,232  Total19,515 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Homelessness in Massachusetts  Doubling up Living with friends or relatives due to economic hardship, loss of housing and similar reason  Summer Campgrounds & Winter Rentals  Couch surfing  Families  Unaccompanied youth Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Homelessness in Massachusetts  State Shelter system Family Shelters: congregate shelter, scatter site shelter Motels Unaccompanied Youth in Adult Shelters Moving out of Shelter & Signing a Lease Enrollment Verification Letter  Department of Children and Families STARR, TCU, Temporary foster care (90 days) Formerly homeless or Fostering Connections Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Best Practices  Policy  Template at MASC.org  ESE summary page  Sample District Policies  Enrollment  Do your enrollment forms cite McKinney-Vento or families in transition?  Public Notice  Scanning for safety Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Best Practices  Identification, the key is training.  Who: enrollment staff, guidance, principals, nurses  DVDs  Awareness building: school committee, community  Student Support Services  Collaboration with Title 1, sped, ELL, …  21 st Century, Afterschool/Out of School,… Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Best Practices  Collaboration and Outreach  Medical, mental, and dental health  Food Pantries & Clothing Banks  Local transportation  Local housing advocates  Local enrichment opportunities  Public Libraries  Municipal Parks and Recreation  YM/WCAs, Boys and Girls, Out of School Time Providers Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Related Topics  Unaccompanied Homeless Youth and Young Adult Commission  Passed by the state legislature  ESE is a participating member  US ICH Open Doors focus on unaccompanied youth  Youth Count! 2 nd statewide count.  Post-Secondary Homeless Education Network  Single Point of Contact (SPOC) at public institutions  Regional Forums Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Related Topics  Trafficking  Migrant Education Program Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

What’s on your mind?  What are you seeing?  What are you concerned about?  What’s working for you? Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Is your contact information up to date?  Your District’s Contact  Verify your contact information on the ESE website Including name, , phone and extension;  Update is done by the District’s Directory Administrator – not by ESE;  Parents, providers and other state agencies reference this list; and  This is how we reach you. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Looking for more information?  National Center for Homeless Education NCHE, serve.org  National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth naehcy.org/  National Runaway Safeline 1800runaway.org  Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless mahomeless.org  MHSA Young Adult Resource Guide Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

We are Glad to Help… Office for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth  Website    Sarah Slautterback, State Coordinator  Elizabeth Harris, Student Support Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education