Homeless Children and Youth
Information and Board Policy
July 29, 2008
FEDERAL DEFINITION
Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act
• A “homeless individual” includes
• 1. An individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; and
• 2. An individual who has a primary
residence that is-
A. a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to
provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare hotels,
congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally
ill);
• B. an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
• C. a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.
IOWA DEFINITION
• Chapter 33, Educating the Homeless, Iowa Administrative Code, defines a “Homeless Child of School Age”:
• -as a child between the ages of 5 and 21
• -who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence
• -including a child or youth who is living
• in a car, tent, or abandoned building or some or some other form of shelter not defined as a permanent home;
• who is living in a community shelter facility
• who is living with non-nuclear family members or with friends (includes doubled-up families).
NOTE: The Iowa Definition is for school-age children and youth, ages 5-21, and the Federal Definition is for individuals of any age.
CATEGORIES OF HOMELESS CHILDREN
• Migratory Children and Youth--if staying in accommodations not fit for habitation.
• Runaways--if their parents have provided and are willing to provide a home for them.
• Throwaways--if they live on the streets, in shelters or in other transitional or inadequate accommodations.
• Abandoned Children and Youth--are homeless until a fixed, regular, and adequate residence is obtained. (Including children abandoned in hospitals.)
• School-Age Unwed Mothers--if living in homes for unwed mothers, and they have no other available living accommodations.
•Children Living With Homeless Parent(s)--the parent(s) may be living on the street, in emergency shelters, in transitional housing, or doubled-up.
•Children, Not With Parent(s), Doubled-Up With Friends or Relatives--if doubled-up because of loss of housing or other similar situations and the placement is not considered permanent.
•Children Living With Family That Is Doubled-Up With Another Family--if the family lost its housing and moved in with another family.
•Children Placed By The State or County In An Emergency Shelter, Transitional Housing, or Temporarily Placed In Foster Care Because of Lack of Shelter Space
Enrollment: Rights of Homeless Students
• Homeless children and youth have the right of access the same free and appropriate public education, including a public preschool education, as provided to all other children.
• A homeless child or youth may remain in the school he/she attended before becoming homeless, if that is determined to be in the child’s best interest.
• Homeless children must be admitted immediately, without medical records.
• Lack of school records cannot prevent a homeless student from enrolling in a new school.
• Homeless children and youth shall be provided services comparable to services offered to other students.
• Homeless families do NOT need to provide a permanent address in order to enroll students in school, nor do youth on their own need to provide this information before enrolling. Schools cannot require proof of residency that will prevent or delay school enrollment.
• Parental permission can not be used to delay enrollment of homeless youth.
• In determining school placement, the child’s best interest must be considered. Consideration must be given to parent requests for school placement.
• A child or youth who meets the definition of homeless in Chapter 33, Educating the Homeless, shall not be denied a free appropriate education solely on the basis of transportation.
• A comprehensive checklist of Iowa requirements for the education of homeless children and youth is in the publication, Homelessness: Local Program Planning Review Guide: Services for Homeless Children and Youth. This publication may be accessed through the Iowa Department of Education, Homeless Education web site. DE Website-Homeless
This site also includes links for more resources for homeless information.
East Central School Board Policy 501.16 addresses Homeless Children and Youth:
Policy #501.16 - HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH- The board will make reasonable efforts to identify homeless children and youth of school age within the district, encourage their enrollment and eliminate existing barriers to their receiving an education which may exist in district policies or practices. The designated coordinator for identification of homeless children and for tracking and monitoring programs and activities for these children is At-Risk coordinator.
A homeless child is defined as a child or youth between the ages of 5 and 21 who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence and includes a child or youth who is living on the street, in a car, tent, or abandoned building or some other form of shelter not designed as a permanent home; who is living in a community shelter facility; or who is living with non-nuclear family members or with friends, who may or may not have legal guardianship over the child or youth of school age.
So that enrollment of homeless children and youth of school age may be facilitated, the following policy areas are modified as follows:
School Records: For students transferring out of the district, records may be provided directly to the student or the student’s parents. In addition, students transferring into the school district may provide cumulative records directly to the district. The school district will not require that such records be forwarded from another school district before that student may enroll. The school will then request the official records from the previous school.
Immunization Requirements: Homeless students will not be denied enrollment for lack of immunization records if:
(1) they have a statement signed by a physician stating that immunization would be injurious to the student;
(2) they provide an affidavit stating such immunization would conflict with their religious beliefs;
(3) they are in the process of being immunized; or
(4) they are a transfer student from another school.
The school district will make a reasonable effort to locate immunization records from the information provided or will arrange for the student to receive immunizations.
Waiver of Fees and ChargesFees and charges that may present a barrier to the enrollment or transfer of a homeless child or youth may be waived in the discretion of the superintendent.
Enrollment Requirements/Placement:Enrollment requirements that may constitute a barrier to the education of the homeless child or youth may be waived in the discretion of the superintendent. If the school district is unable to determine the grade level of the student because of missing or incomplete records, the school district will administer tests or utilize other reasonable means to determine the appropriate grade level for the child.
Residency: For purposes of a homeless child or youth, residence for the purpose of attending school is where the child actually resides or the child’s school district of origin. A child’s school district of origin is the school district where the child was last enrolled. The deciding factor is the welfare of the child. As much as possible, the child will not be required to change attendance centers within the school district every time the child changes residence unless that changes results in the child no longer being classified as homeless.
Transportation: Policies or practices regarding transportation of students that might cause a barrier to the attendance of a homeless child or youth may be waived by the superintendent.
Special Services: All services that are available to resident students are made available to homeless children or youths enrolled in the school district. Services include special education, talented and gifted programs, vocational education, English as a second language programs, health services, and food and nutrition programs.
The contents of this policy will supersede any and all conflicting provisions in board policies dealing with the seven policy areas discussed above.
For more information, contact Matt McDonough at 563 682-7131.
