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https://PollEv.com/surveys/gUKbh6RRHfkZsgXk4Y3VW/respond

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Children who are experiencing homelessness are exposed to various traumatic experiences as a result of housing instability. According to American Psychiatric Association, Traumatic experiences tend to be unexpected life events outside of a person’s control, such as criminal victimization, accident, natural disaster, war, or exposure to community or family violence. Social workers learn that psychosocial history must be considered when clients face the damaging effects of child maltreatment and chaotic family environments, which produce problems later in life (Levenson, 2017).

Research has proven that trauma affecting early childhood is incredibly impactful on a person’s life (Levenson 2017).

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Barriers to Education for Homeless Children and Youth

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Barriers to Education for Homeless Children and Youth

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Enrollment requirement- School record, immunizations, proof of residence and guardianship.

Lack of transportation

Lack of access to programs

Lack of school supplies, clothing, etc

Poor health, fatigue, hunger

Prejudice and misunderstanding

High mobility resulting in lack of school stability and educational continuity

Lack of financial resources

Lack of Wifi/Internet

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The issue of homelessness students in Westchester County

The issue of homelessness continues to increase throughout Westchester County and wealth inequality is undeniable in the County.

The issue of homeless students is an invisible issue according to Westchester Children's Association. Westchester Children's Association releases an annual report entitled, Making the Invisible Visible.  The report provides statistics by village, town and cities.  An example of wealth inequality is, the Village of Scarsdale, NY (ranked the second richest place to live) has 2 homeless students out of 4,749 students - verses Mount Vernon, NY which is a significantly smaller and a city with 925 homeless students out of 7,863 students.

Westchester County wide student population is 148,154 and 2,357 are homeless. The housing status is as follows:

1491 students are doubled up. Double up is when an individual or family lives with another household temporarily or shuffles indefinitely between homes often because of economic need.
41 live in a hotel or motel

470 are in shelter placement.

353 are transitional.

2 are unsheltered.

Predisposing/ Risk factors are parents who struggle with addiction, family breakdown, unemployment, lack of education and mental illness.

The percentages of Westchester County homeless students by race are a clear indication of systemic racism and oppression throughout the County. 43% of homeless students are Hispanic, 48% black, 5% white, 1.7% multi-racial and .7% Asian.

According to Westchester County Association for Kids, the further expansion of homeless prevention services and the collection and assessment of comprehensive data are recommendations to combat student homelessness.

Community Outreach Preventions

Local civic, faith-based, etc. organizations conduct annual coat and clothes' drives and back to school events.

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Westchester Children's Association - WCA4kids

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This visualization is best viewed on the desktop.

The Westchester Children's Association (WCA) has launched an important new Dashboard - Westchester County Child and Youth Homelessness Dashboard (WCCYHD) - that brings to light key data on the scope and scale of children and youth across Westchester who are experiencing homelessness.

While conducting research for our report, " Making the Invisible Visible: Westchester's Hidden Homeless Children and Youth " (2019,) we realized that there was limited public data on the factors that exacerbate or perpetuate homelessness such as racial inequity. We dug deeper and got more information about public school students experiencing homelessness by their age, race, and school district using FOIL requests. Thanks to our partners at the Westchester County Department of Social Services (DSS) and Westchester Continuum of Care Partnership to End Homelessness, we are able to present information about housing situations, shelter occupancy, usage of support services, length of homelessness, and housing circumstances.
We hope that this information helps our communities to see where children are slipping through the cracks so that we can apply a more universal definition of homelessness among organizations and provide more support to those in need.
Find out more:

Read a blog post by Limarie Cabrera, Director of Data, Finance, and Operations.
See an introductory video about how the WCCYHD Dashboard works.

Download our Press Release about the WCCYHD Dashboard.
Read about ourwork to help homeless children and youth.

#WCAchildhomelessness | Follow @WCA4kids

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WCA's new Dashboard shows the whole story about children & youth experiencing homelessness in Westchester County

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This visualization is best viewed on the desktop. The Westchester Children's Association (WCA) has launched an important new Dashboard - Westchester County Child and Youth Homelessness Dashboard (WCCYHD) - that brings to light key data on the scope and scale of children and youth across Westchester who are experiencing homelessness.

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Here are some ideas of what school staff can do to be more supportive:

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Here are some ideas of what school staff can do to be more supportive:

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1. Supply school materials.

2. Help children to get transportation, the school bus or public transportation.

3. In addition provide free food,  breakfast, lunch and reduced-price lunch program.

4. Provide school clothes, personal hygiene items, and winter clothes.

5. Funds for extracurricular activities or hobbies

6. Coordinated housing assistance referrals with other community resources, mental health, counseling, and medical care.

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The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act

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The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act

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It's a federal legislation that ensures the educational rights and protections of children and youth experiencing homelessness.

It was passed in 1987 and it entitles homeless children to a free and appropriate public education.

It requires schools to eliminate barriers to their enrollment, attendance, and success in school and sets aside Title I funds specifically for their support.

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Engage in practices like a morning check-in to start each day by connecting with these realities

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This work is not about labeling students; it's about forming authentic relationships to build trust, build strengths, and better respond to needs.

Investigating trauma in the students; this approach recognizes that what happens in students' lives outside of school influences how they participate in class. It is beneficial to the school's culture to be sensitive to the realities of student life.

Prepare students for the transition to life after high school.

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-Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) is an overarching structure and treatment attitude that emphasizes understanding, compassion, and responding to the effects of all types of trauma.

- When working with students in constant contact with traumatic life experiences, implementing Trauma-Informed Social Work Practice delivers services that seek to create a safe environment, which enables trust, choice, collaboration, and empowerment that clients tend to lack in their everyday lives (Levenson,2017).

- When using TIC as a model in a school setting, social workers can find the intersection of trauma, health, and social issues, which could be especially helpful when working with the student population.

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How Teachers Can Support Students Experiencing Homelessness

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How Teachers Can Support Students Experiencing Homelessness

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Welcome the child into your classroom community- Begin by getting to know them as an individual and work to build their trust.

Foster a sense of safety and security- Their current living situation may feel chaotic, and school is often their safe haven.

Give them ownership in the classroom- Empower them by giving them something that they can call their own: a defined space, a plant to take care of, a class pet to feed, a job to do.

Make sure they get lots of time for fresh air and play- School may be the only place they have to run and play. The playground is also where they may begin to connect with classmates and make new friends.

Set them up for success with school work- Make arrangements for additional tutoring or academic help if needed.

Supply students with the tools they need- Provide your student with a backpack with the work supplies they need and a clipboard to take home as a portable desk.

Provide emotional support- Help them find positive outlets for anger, and give them choices, when appropriate, to counter the loss of control they feel.

Educate yourselves- Be culturally aware and competent of the population you’re working with.

Provide Routines- Not having a consistent home provides a lot of instability. By having set routines in schools. It alleviates distress in anxiety and normalizes expectations and routines. Students thrive with stability.

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The number of school-age children in New York City who live in shelters or "doubled up" in apartments with family or friends has swelled by 70 percent over the past decade - a crisis without precedent in the city's history.

By day, New York's 114,085 homeless students live in plain sight: They study on the subway and sprint through playgrounds. At night, these children sometimes sleep in squalid, unsafe rooms, often for just a few months until they move again. School is the only stable place they know.

Sandy is one of over 73,000 homeless students who lived "doubled up" last year. In one place Sandy's family used to live, a roommate tried to kill a neighbor. In another apartment, the family was barred from using the kitchen by their housemates and had to eat in the bedroom.

Sherine, 35, has eight children. The five eldest were removed from her care years ago when she was living with their father, who she says was abusive.

Additional reporting by Andrea Salcedo. Produced by Andrew Hinderaker and Meghan Louttit

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114,000 Students in N.Y.C. Are Homeless. These Two Let Us Into Their Lives.

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TEMPLATE NOT FOUND: blank The number of school-age children in New York City who live in shelters or "doubled up" in apartments with family or friends has swelled by 70 percent over the past decade - a crisis without precedent in the city's history.

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Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness

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Children who experience homelessness are often confronted with roadblocks, potholes, twists, and turns that prevent them from ever reaching their full potential. They are frequently sent to school sleep deprived, malnourished, and with emotional and mental challenges-yet are expected to perform at the same levels as students without the same baggage. Children who were homeless faced a greater risk of being suspended from school. What's more, homeless black students were suspended at over twice the citywide average.

Why does this occur? A child who comes to school hungry will struggle to focus in class. Sleep deprivation can lead to difficulties sitting attentively and retaining information. Family violence can cause stress and anxiety. When dealing with these and other challenges, children may act out in school or struggle to meet a teacher's demands.

In addition, homeless students are identified later than their peers as needing an Individualized Education Plan. When attention deficits or other learning disabilities are not met with adequate support early on, they can later turn into behavioral problems that lead to suspensions. Should behavioral challenges brought on by unsupported needs mean that a child faces disciplinary actions at school?

I worked as a school teacher before joining ICPH as a policy analyst, and I have seen firsthand that the challenges homeless students face are enormous. We continue to hold them to the same behavioral standards as housed students, often without adequate resources, and then penalize them for not meeting those standards. We all know that missed learning time places a student at risk of falling behind, being retained a grade, and dropping out of school. A student who drops out faces greater risks of being unemployed or incarcerated. Essentially, students experiencing homelessness are more likely than their housed peers to be funneled into the "school-to-prison" pipeline. The effects of suspension on our City's most vulnerable population needs to be part of the education reform conversation.

Services are needed to support homeless students and prevent them from being suspended. Schools serving a high concentration of homeless students should offer comprehensive services, such as school-based health centers, with social workers and school counselors on deck. This could mean the difference between a student acting out and being sent home, or a student who remains in class and is invested in learning. Teachers and school staff need additional resources, including more professional learning time dedicated to building knowledge around positive behavioral support or restorative justice strategies. A teacher may need a series of professional learning opportunities to fully internalize and become proficient in the use of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) system techniques. These tools are especially critical for educators serving in middle schools where disparities are the widest.

We cannot afford to ignore the emotional and behavioral needs of homeless students. In addition to adding new programs, we must continue to evaluate the effectiveness of these programs and provide schools with adequate resources to effectively support students experiencing homelessness. Their lives and their futures matter.

Janice Tolbert, Policy Analyst

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How Can Schools Provide Homeless Students with Emotional and Behavioral Support? - Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness

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Children who experience homelessness are often confronted with roadblocks, potholes, twists, and turns that prevent them from ever reaching their full potential. They are frequently sent to school sleep deprived, malnourished, and with emotional and mental challenges-yet are expected to perform at the same levels as students without the same baggage....

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Attendance falls for homeless students in N.Y.C., in part because of the pandemic, a study shows. (Published 2021)

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Attendance rates for students living in shelters fell to just 73 percent in the first few weeks of the new school year, compared with around 90 percent for all students.