Schools give homeless children hope and a chance for a better future.

Information for Parents and School-Aged Children / Youth (.pdf)

Información para Jóvenes de Edad Escolar / para Padres (.pdf)

The LEA is your "Local Education Agency".
The LEA for this web site is Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools (USD 500)

Federal Funding is provided by Title I and the McKinney-Vento Act, originally enacted in 1987.

Definition of Homeless

• In emergency or transitional shelters.
• In motels, hotels, trailer parks, campgrounds, abandoned in hospitals, or awaiting foster care.
• In cars, parks, public places, bus or train stations, or abandoned buildings.
• Doubled up with relative or friends.
• Migratory children living in these conditions.

How Vulnerable Are You to Becoming Homeless?

• Could you ever experience a flood, fire, tornado, or other natural disaster?
• Do you work in an area of the economy/job market where your job might become obsolete?
• Could you ever suffer from a long-term illness or accident without proper health benefits or other compensations?
• Do you live in a household with no more than one full-time wage earner?
• Are you behind on any monthly bills?
• Are housing costs in your area increasing faster than wages?
• Does anyone in your family struggle with addictions such as drugs or alcohol?

What Homeless Families Need to Know

• Homeless children have a right to attend school.
• You do not need a permanent address to enroll your child in school.
• Homeless children have the right to stay in their home school if the parents choose.
• Your child cannot be denied school enrollment just because school records or other enrollment documentation are not immediately available.
• Your child has the right to transportation services to and from the school of origin.
• Your child has the right to participate in extracurricular activities and all federal, state, or local programs for which he/she is eligible.

What Your Family Can Do Before You Move

• Tell your child's teacher and principal that your child is moving, and give them the new address.
• Let school officials know if you want your child to stay in his/her home school while you are getting the family stabilized.
• Ask for a copy of your child's school records, including immunization

Tips for Families Who Move Often

• Keep a copy of birth certificates and school records accessible.
• Safeguard all health and immunization records.
• Have a reliable person keep a second copy of the child's birth certificate, school records, and health information.
• Enroll children in school as soon as possible.

Ask about These Special Services at School

• Free breakfast and lunch programs.
• Free transportation services.
• Special transportation for children to remain in their home school.
• Special education programs, especially if the student has previously received special education services.
• Tutoring programs.
• Programs to help children learn English.
• Gifted or talented programs.
• Summer school programs.
• Pre-school programs.
• After-school programs.
• Homeless assistance programs.

Federal Publications

Homeless & School Nutrition Memo (.pdf)
Enrollment (.pdf)
Identifying Students in Homeless Situations (.pdf)
LEA Liaisons (.pdf)
Resolution of Disputes (.pdf)
School Selection (.pdf)
Title I and Homelessness (.pdf)
Transportation (.pdf)
Unaccompanied Youth (.pdf)

What LEA Administrators Should Know (.pdf)
What Service Providers Should Know (.pdf)
Who is Homeless (.pdf)

Reauthorization of McKinney Vento - At a Glance (.pdf)
Reauthorization of McKinney Vento - Summary (.pdf)

Homeless Liaison Toolkit (.pdf)

Kansas Laws & Regulations (Word)

LEA Homeless Liaison Information (Word)

Websites on Homeless Information (Word)

TIP SHEETS

Administrators (Word)
Common Signs of Homelessness (Word)
Determining Feasibility of School Placement (Word)
Guidance Counselor (Word)
Parents (Word)
School Nurse (Word)
Secretaries (Word)
Teacher (Word)
Who are Homeless Children/Youth (Word)

Agency Information List

The following contacts may be useful resources for homeless families with children:

American Bar Association Commission on Homelessness and Poverty
www.abanet.org/homeless/

American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law
www.abanet.org/child/

Child Help USA Hotline
Counselors Available to talk with pre-teens about their problems with child abuse, runaway teens, and high-risk behavior.
800-422-4453

Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
www.cec.sped.org/

Directory of State Coordinators for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth
www.serve.org/nche/

Health Care-AIDS Hotline for Teens
Provides information on AIDS for teenagers by other teenagers.
800-234-8336

Hill Burton Free Hospital Care
(US Dept of Health and Human Services)
Information and referral to facilities that provide free medical care.
800-638-0742

Legal Center for Foster Care and Education (Legal Center FCE)
www.abanet.org/child/education/

Medicare Hotline
Federal Health Care Financing Administration
800-633-4227

National Alliance to End Homelessness
202-393-0287

National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY)
www.naehcy.org/

National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE)
www.nasdse.org/

Nation Center for Homeless Education (NCHE)
www.serve.org/nche/ or www.serve.org/nche/katrina for major disaster information

National Center on Family Homelessness (NCH)
www.nationalhomeless.org/

National Coalition for the Homeless
800-621-4000

National Disability Rights Network (NDRN)
www.napas.org/

National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities
www.nichcy.org/

National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty (NLCHP)
www.nlchp.org/

National Network for Youth (NNY)
www.nn4youth.org/

National Runaway Switchboard
www.1800runaway.org/

Parent Training and Information Centers
www.taalliance.org/centers/

Social Security Administration Hotline
Assists individuals applying for benefits.
800-772-1213 or 800-325-0778 (TDD)

U.S. Department of Education
www.ed.gov/

U. S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs
www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/users/osep/

Site Updated:  08-Jan-2008

If there are links here that do not work, please contact Patricia Adams with the link URL. Thank you.