Supporting Higher Education for Vulnerable Youth

1. Pennsylvania’s Education for Children & Youth Experiencing Homelessness Program(ECYEH) Supporting Higher Education for Vulnerable Youth

2. McKinney-Vento Federal ActA law to protect children experiencing homelessness through educational stability. “. . .through it all, school is the only thing that has kept me going. I know that every day that I walk in those doors, I can stop thinking about my problems.” Carrie Arnold, LeTendre Scholar, former student experiencing homelessness, 2002

3. 40% of all homeless in the United States, and the fastest growing population are Women, Children, and Families • 65% of the families are women with children • 20%-40% were experiencing sexual abuse • 40%-60% were experiencing physical abuse

4. Program funds and guidance are provided by the McKinney-Vento Act passed in 1987. • Each district in the state has a Homeless Liaison to serve their homeless students. • The average age of a homeless individual in the United States is 9 years. Did You Know?

5. Children who lack a fixed, regular and adequate night time residence Program Eligibility - Who is Homeless:

6. Sharing housing of others due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reason (“Doubled up”) • Living in motels, hotels, trailers, camping grounds, tents, barns, cars, abandoned buildings, etc. due to lack of adequate alternative accommodations • Living in emergency or transitional shelters • Abandoned, throw-away, runaway children not living with a parent or legal guardian • Migratory children living in above circumstances • Awaiting Foster Care placement Who is Homeless cont’d

7. Program Eligibility • Look at the McKinney-Vento definition (assess the situation per specific examples within the definition first, then look at the overall definition as each case is unique) NCHE’s Determining Eligibility brief is available at http://www.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/det_elig.pdf • Case-by-case determination • Need to secure as much information as possible (without intimidating the parent or youth)

8. Definition: “Awaiting Foster Care” Children and youth “awaiting foster care” placement include those who are placed in shelters, emergency fostercare, transitional foster care or respite care. These placement settings are intended to be short term, and do not typically last longer than 30 days. Individual circumstances may, at times, require a longer length of stay.

9. How Schools Determine Homelessness Was there an event? • Flood • Fire • Mold • Domestic Violence • Thrown Out • Eviction • Runaway Or Substandard Housing? ” Legal Definition: “fixed, regular, adequate”

10. Substandard Housing • No utilities (heat, water, etc.) • Overcrowded • Boards on windows • Tarp on Roof • Camper • Holes to outside • Dirt on Floor • Hotel • Motel • Tent • Car

11. More people living in shelters and transitional housing • Transient populations (families will move in and out of locations) • More single adults • Homelessness is a more “visible” issue – people sometimes on the streets • Open to & often seeking services • More resources and funding available • Living in cars, parks, campgrounds, barns, tents, hunting cabins; run down homes often without running water or heat, windows are gone, roof covered with tarps; doubled-up with other families • Stable populations (do not move as frequently) • More families • Homeless is a “hidden” issue – people are under a roof • Less likely to accept or seek our services • Fewer resources available Rural VS Urban

12. Temporary: When people are displaced from their usual dwellings by fire, eviction, divorce, etc. • Episodic: Those who frequently experience periods of being housed and then homeless. • Chronic: Without a home for more than a year. More likely to suffer from mental illness and substance abuse then other classes of homeless people (Bassuketal. 1986; Fischer and Breakey, 1988). Patterns of Homelessness

13. Students can stay in their school of origin for the duration of homelessness and until the end of the school year when they find permanent housing, as long as that is in their best interest. • School of origin—school attended when permanently housed or in which last enrolled. • Best interest—keep students who are homeless in their schools of origin, to the extent “feasible”, unless this is against the parents’ or guardians’ wishes. • Can always also choose the local school (any school others living in the same area are eligible to attend). Key Provisions- Schools

14. Provide technical assistance to districts and organizations • Implement tutoring and enrichment services in shelters and other settings • Distribute literature related to homeless children • Provide training and in-service related to the McKinney- Vento Homeless Assistance Act • Assist students with obtaining clothing, school supplies, fees, etc. • Assist with school enrollment and placement • Provide referrals for clothing, food, shelter, rent, medical services, preschool, housing, advocacy, counseling, etc. How Can PA’s ECYEH Program Help?

15. Schools cannot require that a family who “takes in” a student obtain guardianship. Guardianship can only come from a judge. • Students can sign paperwork themselves, the adult they live with can complete a “Caregiver’s Authorization Form” in order to sign for them, or the District Liaison can sign in lieu of these options. Unaccompanied Youth Experiencing Homelessness

16. Many children under the age of 18 who live with someone who is not a parent or legal guardian fall under this definition. Children over the age of 18 who have been “kicked out” of their home, or left due to safety reasons, will also meet this definition. • Unaccompanied homeless youth can apply for Federal Student Aid (complete the FAFSA form) to attend college without a parent/guardian signature. Unaccompanied Youth Experiencing Homelessness Cont’d

17. Helping A Student Experiencing Homelessness Complete The FASFA

18. Independent if ANY of these are true: • Married • 24 years old • Veteran or on active duty • Graduate student • Has a legal dependent (child/other) • Orphan/Ward of the court/In a legal guardianship • Legally emancipated minor • In foster care at age 13 or older • Unaccompanied homeless youth • Independent by “professional judgment” or “dependency override” as determined by the Financial AidAdministrator (FAA) Classification as “Independent”

19. EFC = Expected Family Contribution; based on the information submitted on the FAFSA, the U.S. Department of Education will calculate the EFC Dependent Student • Must report parent information on FAFSA • EFC is based on parents’ and student’s income and assets • Independent Student • Does NOT report parent information on FAFSA • EFC is based on student’s income and assets Calculation of Federal Aid

20. Dependent or Independent • “Accompanied students” experiencing homelessness fill out the FAFSA as dependent students • Living arrangement meets the M-V definition of homeless • In the physical custody of a parent or guardian Accompanied ?

21. Provide information on parent income and assets and their own income and assets • Need parent signature • The EFC is based on family income and assets; as such, even though they fill out the FAFSA as dependent students, homeless students from low-income families will likely qualify for a beneficial aid package • Example: The EFC Formula, 2012-2013 explains that, under certain circumstances, students qualify for an automatic $0 EFC, including students who received free school meals in 2010 or 2011, and whose parents’ 2011 income is less than $23,000http://ifap.ed.gov/efcformulaguide/attachments/010512EFCFormulaGuide1213.pdf Accompanied Student Experiencing Homelessness and The FAFSA

22. “Unaccompanied”youth experiencing homelessness or at rick of homeless fill out the FAFSA as Independent Students. • Living arrangement meets the M-V definition of homeless • Not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian • 21 or older or still enrolled in high school on the date he/she signs the FAFSA • “At risk of homelessness”: when a student’s housing may cease to be fixed, regular and adequate, for example, a student who is being evicted and has been unable to find fixed, regular, and adequate housing. Dependent or Independent Unaccompanied

23. Do not need to provide information on parental income and assets • Do not need a parental signature • Do provide information on their own income and assets • Independent status is not equivalent to free tuition; however, the EFC is calculated proportional to what the student can provide based on his/her resources Unaccompanied Student Experiencing Homelessness And the FAFSA Unaccompanied

24. Local homeless education liaison; for students graduating from high school who were identified as an UHY while in high school • U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) shelter director or designee; for students who have received services • Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) shelter director or designee; for students who have received services • Financial Aid Administrator (FAA); for any student, but particularly those who cannot get a determination from one of the other three authorized parties Factors To Determine Independent Status For UHY Unaccompanied

25. Undocumented students cannot legally receive any federally funded student financial aid, including loans, grants, scholarships, and work-study programs • Undocumented students are not eligible for state aid to attend a state institution in most states, although a handful of states grant eligibility for state aid to undocumented students who qualify for in-state tuition • Private colleges and universities set their own financial aid policies; some are willing to give scholarships and other aid to undocumented students • Many, but not all, private scholarships require applicants to be U.S. citizens or legal residents Financial Aid for Undocumented Students Undocumented

26. There is no federal or state law prohibiting the admission of undocumented immigrants into U.S. colleges and universities • Institution-specific policies, however, vary: Some institutions of higher education do not require students to prove citizenship in order to gain admission, while others do • Some institutions admit undocumented students but treat them as out-of-state or foreign students, making them ineligible for state aid and in-state tuition College Admission forUndocumented Students Undocumented

27. Many states charge undocumented students out-of-state tuition fees • States that permit undocumented students to pay in-state tuition under certain circumstances include California, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, and Washington • For example, California's law requires the undocumented student to have attended a state high school for three or more years, to have graduated from a state high school, and to sign an affidavit promising to file an application to legalize his immigration status College Tuition for Undocumented Students Undocumented

28. Updated Application and Verification Guide (AVG) released in March 2012 • Student can use the college’s administrative address as his/her mailing address • Youth = 21 or younger or still enrolled in high school on the date he/she signs the FAFSA • Ages 22-23 = need a dependency override for independent status • Age 24 or older is automatic independent status 2012-2013 Application and Verification Guide

29. Encourage UHY to fill out the FAFSA online 2012-2013 Online FASFA

30. “4th question” 2012-2013 Online FAFSA

31. PAPER No “4th question” 2012-2013 PDF FAFSA

32. PAPER 2012-2013 FAFSA

33. “For almost all of my life, I have never had a place to call home. I have questioned why I have to struggle so hard to succeed while others do not have to question whether they will go to college. However, there is one thing I have never questioned: My education.” Khadijah Williams, Harvard University Class of 2014

34. NAEHCY Template (Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Documentation of Independent Student Status for the FAFSA) available at www.naehcy.org/higher_ed.html NCHE/NAEHCY FAA Tool (Making Student Status Determinations for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth: Eligibility Tool for Financial Aid Administrators) available at www.serve.org/nche/downloads/faa_det_tool.pdf Resources

35. National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty - http://www.nlchp.org National Center for Homeless Education - http://www.serve.org/nche Center for Schools and Communities – http://www.center-school.org/ http://homeless.center-school.org National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth - http://www.naehcy.org Horizons for Homeless Children - http://www.horizonsforhomelesschildren.org GENERALRESOURCES Education for Children & Youth Experiencing Homelessness http://homeless.center-school.org/index.cfm Pennsylvania Department of Education – http://www.pde.state.pa.us/ http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/homeless_children's_initiativepro

36. Lynda Becker ECYEH Youth Development Coordinator Center for Schools and Communities Camp Hill, PA 717.763.1661 X 156 Fax: 717.763.2083 lbecker@csc.csiu.org Sonia Pitzi Region 3 ECYEH Coordinator Lincoln Intermediate Unit York, PA 717.718.5924 slpitzi@iu12.org For Assistance Contact ECYEH regional/site coordinator for your area (see regional map)