Presenters: Ron O’Connor- Will County ROE Liaison

1. Recognizing and Assisting McKinney-Vento Eligible Students: IASSW CONFERENCELISLE, IL OCTOBER, 2014 Presenters: Ron O’Connor- Will County ROE Liaison Matt Hanafee – Area 1 McKinney-Vento Lead Liaison

2. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistant Act Removes All Barriers FIRST ACTIVITY • Barriers to Enrollment • Barriers to School Attendance • Barriers to School Success

3. BARRIERSEnrollment • Lack of transportation to or from temporary residence • Lack of immunization and medical records • Lack of school records • State guardianship/residency requirements not uniformly interpreted by school • Lack of birth certificate

4. BARRIERSSchool Attendance • Cannot get up in the morning due to lack of sleep • Can’t get to school because of transportation issues • Poor health • Not having proper clothing for school • Anxiety issues making it difficult to go • Staying home to take care of younger siblings

5. BARRIERSSchool Success • Frequent Mobility • Lack of Staff Awareness and sensitivity • Inability to complete school assignments • Lack of psychological services • Poor health and inadequate medical care • Physical needs – food, clothing, health care

6. INTRODUCTIONS “ “What homeless children need most of all is a home… ...but while they are experiencing homelessness, what they need most is to stay in school. School is one of the few stable, secure places in the lives of homeless children, a place where they can acquire the skills they need to help them escape poverty.” -- Author Unknown

7. DATA & RESEARCH Estimates Number of Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness AREA 1- SUBURBAN CHICAGO • 2006- 2,628 • 2014- 14,199 Statewide • 2006- 18,624 • 2014- 59,315

8. DATA & RESEARCH Effect of Homelessness on Children Mental Health • Mental issues remain higher • even when re-housed • More likely to have persistent • mental health problems • Suffer physical, psychological and • emotional damage due to homelessness • Receive fewer services/interventions/support than other children

9. DATA & RESEARCHHousing Instability • The key to understanding families living in homelessness is to think in terms of housing instability. • Housing instability exists when families do not have the resources to have consistent, reliable housing. • Families that have a high degree of housing instability will frequently bounce back and forth between having a temporarily stable housing situation and homelessness.

10. Lack of affordable housing Domestic violence Lack of education Lack of job skills Serious illness Mental illness Alcohol dependency Family disintegration Unemployment Underemployment Natural disaster DATA & RESEARCHContributing Factors to Homelessness

11. How much $$ is needed to sustain housing? DATA & RESEARCH Sustainability • The hourly wage you must earn to afford an average two bedroom home is: $18.83 per hour. • At minimum wage, $8.25, you would have to work 91 hours a week. • Out of Reach 2014 National Low Income Housing Coalition http://nlihc.org/oor/2013/IL

12. STATUTE AND CODEWho is McKinney-Vento eligible? Children or Youth Who: • Are individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. • And includes those who areShare the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship or a similar reason. • Must be handled case by case.

13. STATUTE AND CODEWho is McKinney-Vento eligible? • Families or Unaccompanied youth living in emergency shelter ,or motel • Families living in domestic violence shelters • Families or youth living in cars, campgrounds, or parks • Children in temporary foster care (awaiting permanent placement) • Families or youth living in substandard housing or abandoned buildings • Families or youth that are doubled up with friends or relatives • Families living in transitional housing programs. • Migrant youth

14. ELIGIBIITY • FIXED • STATIONARY , PREMANANT AND NOT SUBJECT TO CHANGE • REGULAR • STAYING IN THE SAME PLACE EVERY NIGHT, NOT MAKING SEVERAL MOVES IN A SHORT PERIOD • ADEQUATE • MEETS THE PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL NEEDS FOUND IN HOME ENVIROMENTS

15. Clues to McKinney-Vento eligibility “We’ve moved a lot.” “We are staying with relatives/friends while looking for a place.” “We’re living in a few places.” “I’m in a motel right now. We’re going through a bad time right now. I don’t know where we live. I don’t remember the name of the last school. IDENTIFICATION

16. It is the responsibility of the school district to identify McKinney-Vento eligible students Families are not necessarily aware that they are McKinney – Vento Eligible Use a standard enrollment form that asks about youths living situation Ask questions to get a better sense of the family’s or youths circumstances Do not contact persons or agencies outside the school system to obtain information about the student’s living situation IDENTIFICATION

17. By federal and Illinois law, a McKinney-Vento eligible child must be allowed to enroll in (at least) one of the following three schools: (1) the school last attended; (2) the school attended when the child was last permanently housed; or (3) the school that children who have a fixed, regular and adequate living situation in the same attendance area as the McKinney-Vento eligible child or youth lives are eligible to attend. Illinois Education for Homeless Children Act, Section 105 ILCS 45/1-10 and the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(3)(A). CHOICE OF SCHOOLS School of Origin

18. School choice resides with the caregiver of the McKinney-Vento eligible youth, not the school. Children and youth who have experienced homelessness are permitted to attend their school of origin for as long as they lack a fixed regular and adequate residence, or if the child becomes permanently housed, for the remainder of the academic year. CHOICE OF SCHOOLS

19. Districts Must Provide Immediate Enrollment for McKinney-Vento Eligible Students. Without documents normally required. Students must be enrolled in school while records are obtained. Students must be enrolled even without immunizations and other records. Start free breakfast and lunch programs LEA must waive any of the school fees Immediate Enrollment

20. Unaccompanied Youth • Lack of guardianship papers or records cannot delay or prevent enrollment • The school can establish their own policies to meet this mandate • Permit the youth to enroll themselves • Permit the liaison to enroll the youth • Use a caregiver form to allow adult caregivers to enroll youth.

21. GUARDIANSHIP Custody for residency & enrollment DOES NOT mean court-ordered guardianship. (v) If the pupil lives with an adult who has accepted responsibility for the pupil and provides a fixed nighttime abode for the pupil, then the pupil is a resident of the district in which that adult lives… AS LONG AS THE PUPIL IS NOT LIVING WITH THE ADULT FOR ACCESS TO THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS OF THE DISTRICT. GUARDIANSHIP

22. School Liability A school is not liable for serving McKinney-Vento Eligible youth. Liability is based on the concept of negligence – schools are not being negligent when they follow state and federal law. LIABILITY

23. IMMEDIATELY ENROLL all McKinney-Vento Eligible students in free breakfast and lunch programs and to waive any of the fees or charges that are subject to waiver. This includes: Charges for text books and instructional materials Charges for use of school property such as locks, towels, lab equipt. Charges for field trips made during or after school if trip is required or customary part of class or extracurricular activity Charges for uniforms or equipment related to a particular class Charges for supplies related to a particular class Graduation fees such as caps and gowns School record fees School health services fees Driver education fees * School Records may not be withheld due to an outstanding student fee FEE WAIVERS

24. DISPUTE RESOLUTION • The student must be immediately admitted to the school of choice while the dispute is being resolved. • The parent or guardian must be provided with a written explanation of the school’s decision, including the right to appeal the decision • The school must refer the youth, parent, or guardian to the liaison to ensure that the dispute resolution process is carried out expeditiously

25. School districts must provide students experiencing homelessness with transportation to and from their school of origin, at a parent’s or guardian’s request. For unaccompanied youth, schools must provide transportation to and from the school of origin. The local LEA of origin and the LEA in which the McKinney-Vento Eligible child or youth is living shall agree upon a method to apportion the responsibility and costs for providing the child with transportation to and from the school of origin. TRANSPORTATION

26. DUTIES OF THE MCKINNEY-VENTO LIAISON • A McKinney-Vento Liaison is a point person for families in transition at your school or district. • A McKinney-Vento liaison should be knowledgeable about the laws and local rules that are relevant to families in transition and the local shelter policies and procedures • Review and revise any policies, websites, forms and other similar items that may act as barriers to enrollment, attendance and success

27. DUTIES OF THE MCKINNEY-VENTO LIAISON • The McKinney-Vento Liaisons use all their knowledge to act as an advocate on behalf families in transition at the school or district. • The McKinney-Vento liaison can help navigate the complex world of schools and school administration • The McKinney-Vento Liaisons help unaccompanied youth choose and enroll in school, after considering the youth’s wishes and inform the youth of his or her rights for dispute resolution.

28. Eligibility for Title I, Part A Services Suggestions for Services Before-school, after-school, and/or summer programs with educational focus Outreach services to students living in shelter Basic needs such as school uniforms, school supplies and health related needs. Counseling services Teachers, aides and tutors for supplemental instruction Parental involvement programs TITLE 1

29. Head Start - Early Childhood Programs Prioritized for enrollment Immediate Enrollment Enrolled while documents are obtained HEAD START

30. Supporting McKinney-Vento Eligible Students with Disabilities IEA Students must be enrolled and start school School district must provide appropriate services immediately based on existing IEP Adults acting in the place of parents may be considered “parents” SPECIAL NEEDS

31. It is prohibited, under the Illinois School Student Records Act, for any school staff to provide school student records or information therein to any landlord, zoning office, contractor, municipal official or housing authority. Section 2(f)(105 ILCS 10/2(f) Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) Information may be released to the “Parent” Parent means a parent of a student and includes a natural parent, a guardian, or an individual acting as a parent in the absence of a parent or a guardian. 34 CFR §99.3 Violation of law may: Jeopardize housing for families Section 8 housing violations Tenant eviction Flag for immigration Put the district in jeopardy of being sued Put jobs in jeopardy ENSURING PRIVACY

32. Develop relationships and coordinate, with agencies providing supportive services to families of McKinney-Vento children and youth. Domestic violence agencies Shelter operators Transitional housing facilities Runaway youth centers Public & private social agencies Township services City services LAN’s COORDINATION WITH OTHER AGENCIES AND RESOURCES