Get to Know the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE)

1. Get to Know the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE) • Operates U.S. Department of Education’s homeless education technical assistance & information center. Has • Comprehensive website: www.serve.org/nche • Toll-free helpline: Call 800-308-2145 or e-mail homeless@serve.org • Listserv: Visit www.serve.org/nche/listserv.php for subscription instructions • Free resources: Visitwww.serve.org/nche/products.php

2. Determining Eligibility for McKinney-Vento Services National Center forHomeless Education (NCHE) Jan Moore jmoore@serve.org 2015 ESEA Directors Institute

3. Homeless Definition • Children or youth who lack a fixed, regular, & adequate nighttime residence, including: • Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason • Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or campgrounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations • Living in emergency or transitional shelters • Awaiting foster care placement

4. Homeless Definition (cont.) • Living in a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings • Living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings • Migratory children living in the above circumstances • Unaccompanied youth living in the above circumstances

5. Unaccompanied Homeless Youth (UHY) • Not in Physical Custody • Homeless • To be considered an UHY: • The student’s living arrangement must meet the definition of homeless, AND • The student must be considered unaccompanied, defined as “not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian” • UHY NCHE’s Unaccompanied Youth Eligibility Flowchart http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/uhy-elig-chart.pdf

6. Unaccompanied Youth • No lower age limit; upper age limit is your district’s upper age limit for public education • Can be eligible regardless of whether they were abandoned, kicked out, or chose to leave

7. Fixed, Regular, and Adequate • Fixed: • Stationary, permanent, not subject to change • Regular: • Used on a predictable, routine, consistent basis • Consider the relative permanence • Adequate: • Lawfully & reasonably sufficient • Sufficient for meeting physical & psychological needs typically met in a home environment Can the student go to the SAME PLACE (fixed) EVERY NIGHT (regular) to sleep in a SAFE & SUFFICIENT SPACE (adequate)?

8. Adequate • No official federal definition; evaluate according to your community’s norms • Common indicators of substandard housing • Does not meet local building code • Inoperable indoor plumbing • Nonworking, inadequate and/or unsafe electrical service • No working kitchen • Condemned by a government agency • Overcrowded: Consider occupancy guidelines in local/state building codes

9. Laying the Groundwork • Eligibility is determined on a case-by-case basis by examining each student’s nighttime residence • If the residence does not meet all three criteria (fixed, regular, and adequate), it will be considered a homeless situation • MV only provides a few common examples of homelessness • Many residences qualify because they are not fixed, regular, and adequate - even though they do not match any of the law’s specified situations

10. Shared Housing • “Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason” • Doubled-up situations may not last or may place the family or youth in danger • Shelters may not be an option • Every community does not have one • They are often full • Policies may exclude adolescent males • May be safety concerns • Most have stay limits

11. Shared Housing: Considerations • Why did the parties move in together? Was it due to • a crisis, or • a mutual choice as a plan for mutual benefit? • How permanent is the living arrangement intended to be? • Where would the student live if not sharing housing?

12. Shared Housing: Considerations (cont.) • Does the family or youth have any legal right to be in the home? • Has the host family put time limits on the stay? • Can they be asked to leave at any time with no legal recourse? • Do they have a key to the residence? • Can they come and go as they please? • Are there lease restrictions that would cause them to be kicked out if the landlord found out?

13. Due to loss of housing • Did the family or youth lose previous housing due to: • Eviction or foreclosure? • Destruction of or damage to the previous home? • Unhealthy or unsafe conditions? • Domestic violence? • Abuse or neglect? • Absence of a parent/guardian due to abandonment, incarceration, or a similar reason?

14. Economic hardship • Did limited financial resources force the family or youth to leave their home & share housing due to an inability to pay the rent/mortgage & other bills • Clarifying question: • Did economic hardship due to an accident, illness, loss of employment, loss of public benefits, or a similar reason force thefamily or youth to share the housing ofothers temporarily?

15. Questions?

16. During Enrollment • Use residency questionnaires for all students • Samples athttp://center.serve.org/nche/ibt/sc_eligibility.php • If the form indicates a possible homeless situation, either: • refer to the liaison, or • discuss the living arrangement with the family/ student in a private place, with sensitivity

17. Sample Residency Form Questions Student ____________________________ Parent/Guardian __________________________ School _____________________________ Phone/Pager _____________________________ Age _____ Grade _____ D.O.B. __________ Address __________________________________________________________________________ Is this address Temporary or Permanent? (circle one) Please choose all of the following situations the student currently resides in: _____ House or apartment with parent or guardian _____ Motel, car, or campsite _____ Shelter or other temporary housing _____ With friends or family members (other than or in addition to parent/guardian) If you are living in shared housing, please check all of the following reasons that apply: _____ Loss of housing _____ Economic situation _____ Temporarily waiting for house or apartment _____ Provide care for a family member _____ Living with boyfriend/girlfriend _____ Loss of employment _____ Parent/Guardian is deployed _____ Other (Please explain) Are you a student under the age of 18 living apart from your parents or guardians? Yes_____No ______

18. Talking with Parents & Youth • Explain that you need to ask questions to determine eligibility for additional services • Ask questions respectfully • Avoid using the word “homeless”; instead about temporary or transitional situations • Contacting anyone outside the school system for more information could violate FERPA • See NCHE’s Confirming Eligibility brief at www.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/verif_ll.pdf

19. Analyzing Your Findings • Does the living arrangement match one of the examples in the law? • If not, is it another living situation that does not meet the fixed, regular, and adequate standard? • Use the questions in NCHE’s Determining Eligibility brief as a guide http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/det_elig.pdf

20. Common NCHE Helpline questions • Are all shared housing arrangements automatically considered homeless? • Are both doubled-up parties homeless? • Is there a limit on how long a doubled-up student should be considered homeless? • Best practice: Revisit homeless situations at the beginning of each school year

21. What do you think? Mr. Upton lost his job. To avoid falling behind on the mortgage payments, the family rented out their house & moved in with friends. The school bus driver reported that Mrs. Upton has been driving son, Dan, to his bus stop. Dan’s principal says he must transfer since he’s no longer living in that school’s attendance zone. Is Dan eligible for McKinney-Vento services? Why or why not?

22. What do you think? Mr. Grant lost his job in March. After the family was evicted, they moved in with his mom. Mr. Grant found a new job in May, and the family got another apartment last week. Just prior to moving in, Mr. Grant’s mother fell and broke her hip. She is scheduled to return home this week. Daughter, Jessica, wants to stay at her grandmother’s to help out. Is Jessica eligible for McKinney-Vento services? Why or why not?

23. What do you think? Antonio's father took a job three hours away. Antonio is staying with a friend. How will you determine if Antonio is ho What information do you need to determine if Antonio is eligible for McKinney-Vento services? Is he unaccompanied? • Is he unaccompanied? • Other questions?

24. Final Questions?

25. Additional Support Dr. Alyson F. Lerma State Coordinator for Homeless Education 615-770-3871 Alyson.Lerma@tn.gov NCHE Helpline 800-308-2145 homeless@serve.org