What is McKinney-Vento?
The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ensures educational rights and protections for children and youth experiencing homelessness.
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The term homeless children and youth means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This definition also includes:
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Children and youth who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason
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Children who may be living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, shelters, or awaiting foster care placement
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Children and youth who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings
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Children and youth who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings
What are a district's responsibilities for advising families about their rights if families do not identify or consider themselves as homeless?
- Families and youth in homeless situations frequently will not identify themselves as such. Therefore, schools must ensure that families and youth are aware of the Act, who it covers, and what it provides. The Act requires school districts to disseminate public notice of the education rights of children and youth in homeless situations where such children and youth receive services, such as schools, family shelters, and soup kitchens. Identification and outreach techniques must be administered sensitively and without stigma, to create an environment in which families, children and youth will be comfortable seeking support. Once a school has sensitively and discretely explained the rights available under the McKinney‐Vento Act, families or youth may choose not to take advantage of McKinney‐Vento services, at their discretion.
Please contact the District Liaison Superintendent Kelly Baas if you have any questions or to receive services.
If you or your child/children are homeless you may have the right to:
• Immediate enrollment in the school they last attended (school of origin) or the local school where you are currently staying, even if you do not have all the documents normally required at the time of enrollment.
• Continue to attend their school of origin, if requested by you and it is in the best interest.
• Receive transportation to and from their school of origin, the same special programs and services, if needed, as provided to all other children, including free meals.
• Receive the full protections and services provided under all federal and state laws, as it relates to homeless children, youth, and their families.