Before the start of the pandemic, Michigan's public schools identified 4,763 homeless youth living independent of parental support. These youth are homeless--living outside, in shelters, or bouncing from couch to couch. They are estranged from their parents, usually due to abuse, neglect, or parents' struggles with addiction, mental health…

This brief summarizes a study of five school districts that have been recognized for their efforts to provide high-quality services to students experiencing homelessness. The districts worked hard to identify students experiencing homelessness and supplemented modest federal funds with private funding, district funding, community-based resources,…

In March, 2021, signed into law was the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) (HR 1319, Sec. 2001), which addresses the specific and urgent needs of children and youth experiencing homelessness. The purpose of this program (ARP-HCY), is to strengthen the efforts of state educational agencies (SEAs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) to…

This Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) Services Snapshot summarizes key data on demographics and services for children from birth to age five and pregnant women served by all Migrant and Seasonal Head Start programs. The data in this Snapshot is a subset of the annual Program Information Report (PIR) submission to the Office of Head Start.…

Educational attainment is pivotal in preparing students for success after high school. Research shows that high school graduates are more likely to be employed, earn higher wages, and have better health outcomes (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.). While gains have been made in Colorado in increasing graduation rates and reducing…

This study examines the experience of homeless university students. A focus group and in-depth interviews were conducted among 16 homeless students at a university in London to determine the factors that enable them to remain at university despite being homeless. Homelessness has been increasing in the UK since 2010, particularly in London.…

Despite the recent dramatic rise in student homelessness in the U.S., little research evidence exists on the effects of homelessness programs and interventions on students and young people. This paper examines the effects of a homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing program--which combines temporary rental subsidies with light-touch case…

Homelessness and housing insecurity is prevalent on college campuses and influences the ability of a student to persist in their degree program (Hallett & Crutchfield, 2017). Using a mix design and framed by the theoretical frameworks of resiliency and social justice theories, this research sought to assess the barriers and interventions, if…

In 2019 a pilot project called 'Homeless Monopoly' evolved in Coventry to investigate how arts methodologies, dramatic scenarios and gamification could be used to raise awareness in young people regarding homelessness. This article investigates the origins and collaborative development of this project, but specifically focuses on how piloting the…

In the past few decades, scholars and practitioners have given increasing attention to the experiences of families affected by trauma related to substance use, homelessness, and incarceration. As parents seek to restore and maintain parental bonds during traumatic separations and transitions, interdisciplinary family literacy interventions can be…

Alongside rising poverty, student homelessness and school mobility are increasingly impacting U.S. suburbs -- yet, there is little research on how leadership is evolving. Informed by distributed leadership and drawing from over 50 artifacts and 42 interviews with school and community leaders, this study explores how poverty, homelessness, and…

This brief is the third in a series examining timely topics that are relevant to Black families and children in the United States. It presents recent data on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Black families' access to stable housing in the United States and, at the local level, in Newark, New Jersey. First, it highlights national findings…

The purpose of this study was to explore reasons why adolescent youth from foster care and in special education, including those who are newly emancipated from the foster care system, have difficulty transitioning into independent living. The study was guided by one research question: What difficulties do students who receive special education…

Homelessness is a traumatic experience with long-term consequences, particularly for infants and toddlers in their most critical stages of development. Yet homelessness among young children is hidden. Lack of shelter, fear of having children removed from parental custody, and restrictive eligibility criteria for housing programs mean that most…

During the first year of life children are at the greatest risk for experiencing homelessness (Perlman & Fantuzzo, 2010). Unfortunately, data on the number of infants and toddlers experiencing homelessness are extremely limited, and any data available are inadequate for a variety of reasons. There is minimal information on how many young…