Title X Part C

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act
Title X Part C No Child Left Behind Act - 2001
Our children need adults who focus on
results. Secretary Rod Paige
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Number of Children and Youth Experiencing
Homelessness

• 1989 - 272,773
• 1991 - 327,416
• 1993 - 744,266
• 1997 - 841,730
• 2000 930,232

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Definitions of Homeless Children and Youth

• Lack fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime
  residence
• Share housing (due to loss or hardship)
• Live in hotels, motels, trailer homes,
  campgrounds, emergency or transitional shelters,
  abandoned in hospitals, awaiting foster care

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Definitions of Homeless Children and Youth

• Primary nighttime residence not designed or
  ordinarily used as a regular sleeping
  accommodation
• Live in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned
  buildings, substandard housing, bus, or train
  stations

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Definitions of Homeless Children and Youth

• Pre-school aged children.
• Unaccompanied youth (youth not in the physical
  custody of a parent or guardian)
• Migratory children who qualify as homeless
  because of their living situation

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Other Definitions
• Enroll and Enrollment include right to attend
  classes and participate fully in school
  activities
• School of Origin school that child or youth
  attended when permanently housed or last enrolled
• Comparable Services services offered to other
  students in the school selected

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Barriers to Enrollment

• Lack of transportation to or from temporary
  residence
• Lack of immunization and medical
• records
• Lack of school records
• State guardianship/residency requirements not
  uniformly
• interpreted by school
• Lack of birth certificates

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Barriers to Enrollment

• Youth ages 12 and up face additional
• barriers to school enrollment, for example
• Attendance policies
• Secondary school credit accrual
• Legal guardianship requirements

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Barriers to School Success

• Frequent mobility
• Lack of staff awareness and sensitivity
• Inability to complete school assignments
• Lack of psychological services
• Poor health and inadequate medical care
• Physical needs -- food, clothing, health care

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Access to Special Programs and Services
Children experiencing homelessness have
difficulty accessing the following programs and
services

• Special Education
• Head Start
• Gifted and Talented
• Even Start
• Programs for English language learners

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Comparable Services
• Homeless children and youth must receive
• comparable services to those received by all
• other children including
• Transportation services
• Educational services
• Meals through school nutrition programs

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act
Educational Stability Continuity

• Requires schools to keep children in the school
  of origin to the extent feasible, except where
  contrary to the wishes of the parent or guardian
• Child or youths right to attend their school of
  origin extends to entire duration of homelessness
• Requires removal of any barriers that contribute
  to exclusion or enrollment delay

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act
Students Access to School

• Requires schools to immediately enroll children
  and youth experiencing homelessness
• Requires a Liaison in every school district
• Requires public notice of educational rights of
  children and youth experiencing homelessness
  disseminated in every school district

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Parental Options and Involvement
• Requires schools to fully inform parents and
  guardians of
• enrollment options and educational
  opportunities available
• Requires schools to fully inform parents of
  right to have the
• district transport children to school of
  origin
• Requires schools provide written explanations
  to parents
• regarding disputes over school selection and
  enrollment
• and referral to Liaisons for dispute
  resolution
• Requires schools to provide parents and
  guardians with
• meaningful opportunities to participate in the
  education of their
• children

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Educational Rights of Unaccompanied Youth
• Requires schools to fully inform youth of their
  enrollment
• options and available educational opportunities
• Requires LEA Liaison to assist youth in school
• enrollment and selection decisions and
  transportation needs

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Integration of Children and Youth Experiencing
  Homelessness
• Prohibits segregation of students
• into separate schools or separate
• classrooms within schools
• SEAs and LEAs must adopt policies and practices
  to ensure
• that children are not stigmatized or
  segregated on the basis
• of their status as homeless

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• State Support to All School Districts
• Requires Office of State Coordinator to provide
• technical assistance to LEAs to ensure
• statewide accountability, compliance, support
• States must distribute at least 75 of
  allocation
• to LEAs (except in States with minimum
  allotments)

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act
State Support to All School Districts

• Develop strategies to address enrollment delays
  
• caused by immunization and medical records,
  residency,
• guardianship, other required records, uniform
  or dress
• code requirements
• Continue to review and revise all policies for
  barriers
• Provide procedures to identify homeless youth
  separated
• from public schools and to ensure equal access
  to
• secondary education and support services

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Role of State Coordinator
• Gather, validate, and report data on children and
  youth experiencing homelessness
• Access to public preschools, elementary, and
  secondary
• schools
• Special needs of students
• Progress made by State and LEAs in addressing
  
• problems and difficulties
• Success in enrolling, attending, and succeeding
  in school

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Role of State Coordinator
• Technical Assistance
• Technical assistance to LEAs in coordination
  with LEA Liaisons
• to ensure LEA compliance
• Inform school personnel, service providers,
  advocates of the
• duties of the LEA Liaisons

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• LEA Requirements
• Enroll homeless child or youth immediately even
  if no
• records are currently available
• Schools must contact childs or youths school
  last attended
• for academic and other records
• Immediate referral to LEA Liaison if
  immunization or medical
• records are unavailable from prior school(s)
• Records must be kept, maintained, and available
  for future
• school enrollment

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Enrollment Disputes
• Admit child or youth immediately to
• school selected by parent/guardian
• or youth pending resolution of dispute
• School must provide parent/guardian or youth
  with written
• explanation of decision including statement of
  rights
• Referral to Liaison for dispute resolution
• Liaison ensures unaccompanied youth is
  immediately enrolled

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act

• Role of LEA LIAISON
• Assist unaccompanied youth with placement,
  enrollment,
• and knowing their rights
• Disseminate public notices of educational
  rights
• Inform and assist with accessing
• transportation
• Mediate enrollment disputes
• Coordinate and collaborate

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Coordination with Title I

• Title I requires that districts must provide
  services for children and youth who live in
  homeless situations
• Children and youth experiencing homelessness are
  automatically eligible to receive Title I
  services by virtue of their homelessness

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Title I Requirements

• SEAs have to submit a Title I Part A plan
  coordinated with the McKinney-Vento Act - Sec.
  1111
• LEAs have to submit a Title I Part A plan to SEAs
  that is coordinated with McKinney-Vento and
  describes services and set-asides Sec. 1112

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Title I Requirements

• Reservation of Title I Funds - a local education
  agency needs to reserve funds to provide
  comparable services for eligible homeless
  children who do not attend participating schools,
  including providing educationally related support
  services to children in shelters and other
  locations where children may live. - Sec. 1113

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Contact Information

• National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE)
• Diana Bowman, Director
• Helpline 1-800-308-2145 Email
  homeless_at_serve.org http//www.serve.org/nche
• U.S. Department of Education
• Gary Rutkin, Federal Coordinator
• McKinney-Vento Program
• Email gary.rutkin_at_ed.gov
• www.ed.gov/OFFICES/CEP

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McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act
We stand on the brink of comprehensive change in
the culture of education . Secretary Rod
Paige