Unsecured Housing…Pack, Unpack, Pack, Unpack…

1. Unsecured Housing…Pack, Unpack, Pack, Unpack… How McKinney & Migrant Education Work Together to Serve Migrant Students Experiencing Housing Insecurity “Migrant work is vital to local economies” -Colorado Coalition for the Homeless

2. Marcos Fortney, MSW Program Manager: Community Resources Regional McKinney-Vento Grant Coordinator Migrant Education Program Eclectic Social Worker Centennial BOCES-Federal Programs (Board Of Cooperative Educational Services) Phone:970.381.6321 Email: mfortney@cboces.org

3. CBOCES Data - Title X & MEP 2010 / 11 MEP students are three times or more likely to experience a form of housing insecurity, sin hogar MEP CBOCES = 11% All Student State Average = 3%

4. Barriers to Education for Children & Youth in Habitat Disruption • Non-living wage • High mobility, loss of familiarity • Oppression, Racism • Enrollment requirements • Lack of transportation • New curriculum • Lack of school supplies, clothing, etc. • Poor health, fatigue & hunger • Prejudice and misunderstanding

5. Qualifications: • Move, Mobile, Migrant… • Move from 1 district 2 another • Due 2 economic necessity • Occurred in last 3 years • Purpose 2 obtain qualifying agricultural work

6. Seasonal or Temporary • Agricultural = planting, cultivating & harvesting natural resources, food resources… • Dairies, Meat Processing, Nurseries, Fish Hatcheries…

7. Contact State Dept. Education! • Federal Programs? • Title 1 Programs? • Supplemental Services • Most state education agencies receive grants Office of Migrant Education (OME) Program Contact: Michelle Moreno (202) 401-2928 Washington, D.C. http://www2.ed.gov/programs/migrantcoordcenter/contacts.html

8. Median income for farmworkers is less than $11,000 annually • (US Department of Labor, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Office of Program Economics. (2000). Findings from the national agriculture workers survey 1997-1998: A demographic and employment profile of U.S. farmworkers (Research Report No. 8). Washington, DC: US Department of Labor, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Office of Program Economics.) • 65% + of OSY are McKinney-Vento (Castillo, CO CBOCES MEP 2012) • #1 barrier 2 ed. was dental • (Corona Research, CO CBOCES MEP, 2006) • 90% = no health insurance • (Rosenbaum, S. “Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers: Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care”(Washington: Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, 2005), http://www.kff.org/uninsured/upload/Migrant-and-Seasonal-Farmworkers-Health-Insurance-Coverage-and-Access-to-Care-Report.pdf, p. 1)

9. Eligibility = Who is a McKinney Student? Children who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence— • Sharing the housing of others due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reason • Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, camping grounds due to lack of adequate alternative accommodations • Living in emergency or transitional shelters • Abandoned in hospitals • Awaiting foster care placement • Living in a public or private place not designed for humans to live • Living in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, bus or train stations, etc • Unaccompanied youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian who are lacking a fixed, adequate or regular nighttime residence • Children who are migratory living in above circumstances

10. Strength… Providing food for the nation Extremely resilient Bargaining & boycotts 2 acquire livable wages & better working conditions Loving kindness "It's hard work in the fields, but at the same time, it's also good, because it's honorable work. All that produce is going to the tables of important people, and so that is the importance of the humble farmworker...." -Olga Ramirez

11. The Rights of McKinney Students: MEP students identified: • A Homeless Education Liaison • Automatic Enrollment • School of Origin Right • Transportation 2 School of Origin • Settled Disputes Quickly

12. Title 1 Part A Homeless set aside funds • Districts are mandated by federal law 2 set aside a min. amount, $100.00 or more • Used to remove ed. barriers • Funds used for basic needs, school supplies, staff support, etc (http://center.serve.org/nche/ibt/sc_titlei.php) • As an advocate, you ask!

13. 50 – 90% of students do not graduate!!! • Educators estimate 55% graduate from high school (Retrieved June 14, 2004, from http://www.ncfh.org/aaf_01.php) • Colorado Graduations Rates • Migrant Education Graduation Advocate (MEGA)

14. SHARED SYSTEMS

15. Personalismo Migrant Recruiters often have the trust of families • Students & families are more likely to reveal important needs = lacking stable housing, hungry, sick, child not enrolled or attending… • Otherwise, fear, shame, pride, language barriers and poor access to social services can present huge barriers to serving students for academic & social success!

16. Questions ?