Working Together: Head Start Programs

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Working TogetherHead Start Programs the
McKinney-Vento Federal Act

• Pennsylvanias Homeless Childrens Initiative

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McKinney-Vento Federal ActA law to protect
homeless children through educational stability.

• . . .through it all, school is the only thing
  that has kept me going. I know that every day
  that I walk in those doors, I can stop thinking
  about my problems. . .Carrie Arnold, LeTendre
  Scholar, formerly homeless student, 2002

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Do You Know?

• Nightly, there are approximately 2.5 million
  homeless people in the United States.
• Half of those people. . .1.25 million. . . are
  children from birth to 18 years of age.
• Single women and their families are the fastest
  growing population.
• Domestic Violence is the most frequent cause for
  women to leave their homes.

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Did you know?

• The average age of a homeless person is 9 years.
• Head Start now shares the same definition of
  homeless as public school districts in the
  United States.
• Program funds and guidance are provided by the
  McKinney-Vento Act, originally passed in 1987.

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Eligibility Who is Homeless?

• Children who lack a fixed, regular and adequate
  nighttime residence
• Sharing housing of others due to loss of housing,
  economic hardship, or similar reason (Doubled
  up)
• Living in motels, hotels, trailers, camping
  grounds, tents, barns, cars, abandoned buildings,
  etc due to lack of adequate alternative
  accommodations
• Living in emergency or transitional shelters
• Abandoned, throw-away, runaway children not
  living with a parent or legal guardian
• Migratory children living in above circumstances
• Pregnant and parenting teens living in homes for
  unwed mothers
• Awaiting Foster Care placement

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Awaiting Foster Care

• Pennsylvania Department of Education BEC (Basic
  Education Circular) defines
• Children awaiting foster care placement
• Includes youth in
• Interim or respite foster care
• Kinship Care
• Evaluation or diagnostic centers or placement for
  the sole purpose of evaluation
• Basic Education Circular Education for Homeless
  Youth (February 29, 2008)

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Are there people living in shelters HERE?

• There are approximately 250 Shelters in
  Pennsylvania servicing Homeless Families and
  Youth.
• The shelters may be
• Domestic violence, victims are predominately
  women and their children (residency is 30 days.)
• Homeless couples, families, singles (18 and
  over).
• Runaway and throwaway teens (residency is usually
  2 weeks).
• Pregnant and parenting teens
• Bridge or Transitional housing for single parents
  are their children (residency is 18 to 24 months)
  
• Hotel/Motel stays (usually 2 3 days in duration)

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Rural Vs. Urban

• Rural
• Living in cars, parks, campgrounds, barns, tents,
  hunting cabins, etc.
• Living with friends or relatives (Doubled and
  Tripled-Up)
• Living in run down homes often without running
  water or heat, windows are replaced with
  cardboard, plastic, or wood, roof covered with
  tarps, etc.
• Less likely to accept or seek our services
• Fewer resources available
• More families, stable populations (do not move as
  frequently)

• Urban
• More people living in shelters
• Transient populations (families will move in and
  out of locations)
• More single adults
• Homelessness is a more visible issue people
  sometimes on the streets
• Open to services
• More resources and funding available

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How Do Schools Determine Homelessness

• Was there an event?
• Flood
• Fire
• Domestic Violence
• Thrown Out
• Eviction
• Legal Definition
• fixed, regular, adequate

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Early Care Education

• Head Start Early Head Start
• Child Care
• IDEA
• State Pre-Kindergarten Programs
• Other Early Care and Education Partners

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Preschool-Aged Children and McKinney Vento
Federal Law

• District Liaisons must ensure that families and
  children have access to Head Start, Even Start
  and other public preschool programs administered
  by the school district (LEA).
• State plans must describe procedures that ensure
  that homeless children have access to public
  preschool programs.

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Head Start Act 101

• McKinney-Vento federal law applies to all
  preschool programs operated by public school
  districts (LEA)
• Homeless Children are Categorically Eligible,
  even if income exceeds guidelines.
• Transportation must be provided if other
  children in the program receive it (applies to
  LEA administered Head Start and other pre-K
  programs only)
• Transportation requirement does NOT apply to
  Head Start programs that are not administered by
  LEAs. However there are collaboration
  provisions regarding ensuring access to Head
  Start programs.

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Improving Head Start Act 2007 (Reauthorization)

• Homeless children must be identified and
  prioritized for enrollment. Homeless definition
  McKinney-Vento and includes children awaiting
  foster care placement
• May enroll without required documents
• Allocation of funds for expanding existing
  programs considers whether applicants have
  undertaken community-wide planning and needs
  assessment for homeless children
• Enhances collaboration and coordination with
  children welfare, McKinney-Vento program
  liaisons, etc
• Expands outreach efforts to include the homeless
• New standards RE Best Practice

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Why is Head Start important for Homeless
Children?

• A randomized control trial of Head Start found
  that Head Start reduced, by almost half, the
  achievement gap in pre-reading skills between
  Head Start children and the national average for
  all 3 and 4 year olds.
• In another large national survey, researchers
  found that former Head Start students were more
  likely to graduate from high school and to attend
  college than their siblings who attended other
  preschools.
• The most important factor in breaking the cycle
  of generational poverty is EDUCATION!

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Strategies for Head Start providers

• Keep slots open for homeless students
• Provide awareness training for community
  preschool providers
• Collaborate with other early care providers
• Coordinate with IDEA Child Find
• Know your districts identified Homeless
  Liaisons. Provide enrollment forms and
  informational brochures, send flyers home in
  backpacks of school-aged students.
• Know your local Pennsylvania Homeless
  Childrens Initiative Regional and/or Site
  Coordinator.
• Invite McKinney-Vento Coordinators and/or
  District Liaisons to serve on Advisory Councils,
  Boards, Community Assessments.
• Pool resources to provide cross-training.
• Utilize LEA enrollment forms to improve
  screening and intake process.

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Five Steps to Community Assessment A Workbook
for Head Start and Early Head Start Programs
Serving Hispanic and Other Emerging
PopulationsFROM ECLKC (Early Childhood
Knowledge Learning Center) Website
http//eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov

• Step 1 Plan and Organize
• the CA team, the CA content, the service area, a
• time line, tips for getting started
• Step 2 Design Data Collection
• the definition of data, different kinds of data,
• sources of data, developing questions,
  quantitative
• and qualitative data, visual presentation of the
  data
• Step 3 Gather Data
• methods of data collection, guidelines for
  getting
• started, cultural considerations, large databases
• Step 4 Review and Analyze
• what is data analysis, its purpose, how to plan
  data
• analysis, analytic procedures
• Step 5 Make Decisions
• decisions based on the CA data, guidelines for
  recommendations
• and priorities, trend data, the CA Report

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Strategies for Identifying Pre-K homeless
children

• Partner with family shelter agencies (family, DV,
  emergency foster care) to identify young children
• Develop community awareness of who is eligible
  for services
• Provide professional development to local early
  childhood education programs and engage their
  agreement to identify children-particularly in
  doubled-up situations
• Partner with churches and faith-based groups who
  serve families in poverty

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Resources

• National Association for the Education of
  Homeless Children and Youth -
• http//www.naehcy.org
• National Center on Homeless Education -
• http//www.serve.org/nche
• National Law Center on Homelessness Poverty -
• http//www.nlchp.org
• Horizons for Homeless Children -
• http//www.horizonsforhomelesschildren.org
• Pennsylvanias Homeless Childrens Initiative
• http//homeless.center-school.org/index.cfm
• Pennsylvania Department of Education
• http//www.pde.state.pa.us/
• Center for Schools and Communities

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For Assistance Contact

• Region 1 Philadelphia
  Al Quarles 215.400.6045
• Region 2 Dauphin, Lebanon, Lancaster,
  Schuylkill, Berks, Chester Beth Rothermel
  610.987.8509
• Region 3 Huntingdon,. Mifflin, Juniata, Perry,
  Cumberland, Franklin, Adams, York
  Sonia Pitzi 717.843.1128
• Region 4 Beaver, Allegheny, Washington,
  Westmoreland, Somerset, Bedford, Fulton, Fayette,
  Washington, Greene Gail
  Arden Odorcich 412.3945894
• State Coordinator
• Sheldon Winnick 717.783.6468

• Region 5 Butler, Clarion, Crawford, Erie,
  Forest, Lawrence, Mercer, McKean, Venango, Warren
  Wendy Kinnear - 724.458.6700 (Ext
  289)
• Region 6 Armstrong, Blair, Cambria, Cameron,
  Centre, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Indiana,
  Jefferson, Potter
• Andrea Sheesley 724.463.5300 (Ext. 1235)
• Region 7 Bradford, Carbon, Columbia,
  Lackawanna, Lycoming, Luzerne, Montour, Monroe,
  Northumberland, Pike, Snyder Sullivan,
  Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Wayne, Wyoming
  Lori Conway - 570.718.4613
• Region 8 Bucks, Delaware, Lehigh, Northampton,
  Montgomery Thomas Norlan - 800.
  770.4822 (Ext. 1361)