District Approaches to Supports and Funding for Students Experiencing Homelessness

District Approaches to Supports and Funding for Students Experiencing Homelessness

A new report from the Learning Policy Institute examines how five school districts—Browning Public Schools, Cincinnati Public Schools, Polk County Public Schools, Santa Fe Public Schools, and Spokane Public Schools—work to serve students experiencing homelessness. Each of these districts has been recognized for its commitment to addressing the needs of students experiencing homelessness.

This report aims to better understand the assets and needs of students experiencing homelessness, what districts are able to do to address these needs, how districts fund and staff their programs, and the challenges districts confront in meeting the needs of students experiencing homelessness.

Welcome to SHC, Ashanti!

SHC is thrilled to welcome Ashanti Jones, Senior Policy and Advocacy Manager, to our team.

Ashanti received her Master’s of Social Work degree from Columbia University in 2018. Since then, she has tirelessly worked to pursue systems-level change by engaging impacted people in advocacy.

Grounded by a deep belief in empowerment as the road to social change, Ashanti built coalition groups throughout the state of New Jersey. The groups advocated for restoring the right to vote to New Jerseyans on probation and parole, encouraged the Department of Education to build racially accountable reporting systems, and allocated $8.4 million to restorative and transformative justice programming for justice-involved youth. 

In 2019, Ashanti won Harvard University’s Saul Zaentz Innovation Challenge by developing programs that would increase parental engagement in educational outcomes. In line with Horace Mann’s premise of education being the great equalizer, Ashanti plans to use her role at SHC as Senior Policy and Advocacy manager to ensure an unimpeded path to security exists through education for youth experiencing homelessness.

Upcoming Webinars

The Connecticut Head Start on Housing Voucher pilot program has shown tremendous results after the first year, including successfully housing families by putting housing vouchers directly into the hands of Head Start programs.

Advocating for Students Experiencing Homelessness in Missouri
Friday, October 14th, 2pm ET

This webinar is part of a series hosted by SchoolHouse Connection and its Policy Fellows for residents of targeted states who want to learn more about youth homelessness issues and convenient ways they can advocate for effective policy change, and get others in their community to do the same.

Advocating for Students Experiencing Homelessness in Massachusetts
Thursday, October 20th, 12pm ET

This webinar is part of a series hosted by SchoolHouse Connection and its Policy Fellows for residents of targeted states who want to learn more about youth homelessness issues and convenient ways they can advocate for effective policy change, and get others in their community to do the same.

Live Q&A with SHC
Tuesday, November 8th, 2pm ET - 3pm ET

Do you have questions about the legal requirements of the McKinney-Vento Act or how to implement them? Are you facing challenges around unaccompanied youth, disputes, eligibility, or how the law interacts with issues like special education or immigration? Bring your questions; we have answers (or we’ll do our best to find them)! Our time together will not include a formal presentation. Rather, we will address your questions and scenarios in real time. Space is limited, so you are encouraged to register right away. 

Unaccompanied Homeless Youth: Legal Rights and Strategies 
Wednesday, November 16th, 2pm ET - 3pm ET

Join us for an interactive conversation about the legal rights of unaccompanied homeless youth. We will delve into youth’s rights in relation to parental rights under the McKinney-Vento Act and FERPA; review access to public benefits, vital documents, and health care; discuss complex scenarios; and answer your questions.

Where is Team SHC? October Happenings

Here’s where we’ll be in October.

• October 5-6: Homeless Youth Legal Network, Western Pennsylvania Roundtable
• October 11-12: Wisconsin Statewide McKinney-Vento Conference
• October 4, 13, and 19: New Mexico Statewide McKinney-Vento Conference
• October 20: Colorado McKinney-Vento Liaison Training
• October 25-26: EMBARK Georgia Leadership Conference 
• October 30-November 1: National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Annual Conference