Homeless Liaison

Campus Self-Assessment Guide for the Education of Students in Highly Mobile and Homeless Situations

This guide was developed with the philosophy that schools can make a difference. Schools can provide a stabilizing environment, a haven from the chaos of homelessness. Schools can provide the quality of educational experience to empower students in homeless situations to break the cycles of poverty, dependency, and homelessness. Schools can provide a critical link between the community and children without homes and their families.  Children and youth in homeless situations are indeed educable and very capable of positively contributing to the betterment of our society. This guide helps schools answer the questions: What can we do to help children and youth in highly mobile and homeless situations? How can we help children and youth without homes learn?

Student Residency Questionnaire/SRQ (Spanish) for the PEIMS Homeless Status Indicator

This sample template is meant only to be an example of how a district might combine various components into a form that could collect the required information. This is not a mandated form—it is an example prepared for a hypothetical school district to serve as a starting point for districts. Likewise, there is no requirement… Read more »

Student Residency Questionnaire/SRQ (English) for the PEIMS Homeless Status Indicator

This sample template is meant only to be an example of how a district might combine various components into a form that could collect the required information. This is not a mandated form—it is an example prepared for a hypothetical school district to serve as a starting point for districts. Likewise, there is no requirement… Read more »

Immediate Enrollment Under McKinney-Vento: How Local Liaisons Can Keep Homeless Students Safe

Children and youth in homeless situations, particularly unaccompanied youth and survivors of domestic violence, are at a high risk for experiencing violence and victimization.  Frequently, unaccompanied youth become homeless after leaving abusive or destructive home environments. In turn, their homelessness, which often involves “couch surfing” or living on the streets, places them at risk of further victimization, including robbery and assault. Similarly, many survivors of domestic violence flee violent home environments only to find that their batterers continue to pursue them.  Keeping their whereabouts secret is often a matter of life and death.

By protecting confidential information, communicating with care and sensitivity, and building collaborations with community service providers and advocates, schools can play a pivotal role in protecting the safety of children and youth experiencing homelessness.

It is important to remember that the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act requires the immediate enrollment of children and youth experiencing homelessness, even in the absence of records normally required for enrollment. School is the safest place to be for children who may be in danger. Use this checklist to help make your school district a safe place.