1. Supporting Highly Mobile Students

2. Why Educational Stability
The numerous changes and chaos experienced by highly mobile students impacts their education in many ways.
It is rarely an overnight event when a student ….
goes homeless,
is taken into state custody,
follows a parent’s agricultural or fishing jobs, or
experiences the deployment of a parent.

3. Why Educational Stability
Being Highly mobile affects
Whole family
School attendance
Ability to focus and learn
Educational gaps
Behavior
Grade promotion
On time graduation

4. Why Educational Stability
… including
the teacher, classmates and the others in the school.
Students coming and going
Could that happen to me?
I’ve been worried about her.
Is he going to be ok? Is he safe?

5. Why Educational Stability
By focusing on educational stability we can -
Improve school attendance
Reduce distractions from learning
Minimizes educational gaps
Provide consistency while everything else is changing
Encourage continued parent engagement
Maintain connections with relatives, peers, and community.

6. What else is going on for Highly mobile students?
Among highly mobile students we often see
Food insecurity
Lack of medical, dental, and mental health services
Loss of connection to family, friends, community - including siblings
Disrupted adult and peer relationships
Students experience a culmination of ongoing instability …
and trauma.

7. Trauma Recovery

8. What helps Predictability Daily routines
Avoid sudden changes in the classroom
Consistent rules and expectations
Mentoring, daily check ins
Engaging in group activities
Sports
community service learning
afterschool clubs, student newsletter…
Focus on student strengths

9. In small groups discuss:
What works….
In small groups discuss:
What are you seeing as the needs of highly mobile students (perhaps a particular student comes to mind)?
What strategies or best practices have you been using? Do those strategies work for all your highly mobile students? What did not work?
Have you learned a new way(s) to support these students today?

10. Regional Liaisons
The Regional Liaisons are available to provide districts with technical assistance on highly mobile students, talk through cases and suggest best practices and/or local resources.
Carol Baez, Worcester Public schools
Jacob Hansen, Framingham Public Schools
Julie Mador, New Bedford Public Schools x3424
Stacy Parsons, North Adams Public Schools

11. Contact Information – Educational Stability Team
DESE Websites:
Homeless Education
Foster Care Education
People Search for Liaisons/POCs
Migrant Education
Military-Connected Students
Staff:
Christine Cowen, Migrant Education, Military Connected Students
Kristen McKinnon, Foster Care Point of Contact
Sarah Slautterback, State Coordinator< Homeless Education

12. Educational Stability, Office of Student and Family Support
THANK YOU
Educational Stability, Office of Student and Family Support