Homeless Definition

The McKinney-Vento Act’s Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program is the federal program that removes barriers to education for children and youth experiencing homelessness. McKinney-Vento Definition of Homeless: means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This includes:

• children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters
• children and youths 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
• children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings;
• migratory children

Eligible Students Have the Right To

• Receive a free, appropriate public education.
• Enroll in school immediately, even if lacking documents normally required for enrollment.
• Enroll in school and attend classess while the school gathers nneeded documents.
• Enroll in the local school; or continue attending their school of origin if that is your preference.
• Receive transportation to and from the school of origin, if requested.
• Receive educational services comparable to those provided to other students, according to the student's needs.

Homeless Liaison  Sidney ISD contact Candice Rust (crust@sidney.esc14.net) 

Every campus, designates a professional staff person as a liaison for students in homeless situations. Liaisons must ensure that:

• Children and youth in homeless situations are identified by school personnel and through coordination activities with other entities and agencies.
• Students enroll in, and have full and equal opportunity to succeed in  school
• Families, children, and youth receive educational services for which they are eligible, including Head Start, Even Start, and pre-school programs, and referrals to health, mental health, dental, and other appropriate services.
• Parents or guardians are informed of educational and related opportunities available to their children and are provided with meaningful opportunities to participate in the education of their children.
• Public notice of the educational rights of students in homeless situations is disseminated where children and youth receive services under the Act.
• Enrollment disputes are mediated in accordance with the Enrollment Disputes section of the McKinney-Vento Act.
• Parents and guardians and unaccompanied youth are fully informed of all transportation services, including to the school of origin, and are assisted in accessing transportation services.
• Liaisons must assist children and youth who do not have immunizations or immunization or medical records to obtain necessary immunizations or immunization or medical records.
• Liaisons must help unaccompanied youth choose and enroll in a school, after considering the youths' wishes, and provide youth with notice of their right to appeal an enrollment decision that is not their choice.
• Liaisons must ensure that unaccompanied youth are immediately enrolled in school pending resolution of disputes that might arise over school enrollment or placement.
• Liaisons must ensure enrollment conferences are convened for students who are homeless within the first 2 weeks at their new school OR within 2 weeks after the student is identified as homeless.