Homelessness, Foster Care, and Head Start Reauthorization

1
Homelessness, Foster Care, and Head Start
Reauthorization

• January 30, 2008
• National Head Start Association
• Leadership Institute
• Washington DC

2
NAEHCY Who We Are

• NAEHCY is a national grassroots membership
  association that serves as the voice and the
  social conscience for the education of children
  and youth in homeless situations.
• NAEHCY connects educators, parents, advocates,
  researchers, and service providers to ensure
  school enrollment and attendance, and overall
  success for children and youth whose lives have
  been disrupted by the lack of safe, permanent,
  and adequate housing.
• NAEHCY accomplishes these goals through
  advocacy, partnerships, and education.

3
Setting the Context Defining Homelessness

• The Head Start reauthorization includes a
  definition of homelessness that matches the
  definition of homelessness in the education
  subtitle of the McKinney-Vento Homeless
  Assistance Act, which governs public schools
• Identical definition is in the Child Nutrition
  Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education
  Act, and the Violence Against Women Act
• Housing and Urban Development (HUD) homeless
  programs use a more restrictive definition (but
  changes are pending)

4
Setting the Context Definition of Homelessness

• Children who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate
  nighttime residence
• Sharing the housing of others due to loss of
  housing, economic hardship, or similar reason
• Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, camping
  grounds due to lack of adequate alternative
  accommodations
• Living in emergency or transitional shelters
• Abandoned in hospitals

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Setting the Context Definition of Homelessness,
Contd.

• Awaiting foster care placement
• Living in a public or private place not designed
  for humans to live
• Living in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, bus
  or train stations, etc.
• Migratory children living in above circumstances

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Setting the Context Prevalence and Trends

• 907,228 homeless children identified and enrolled
  K-12 in 2005-2006 school year
• 56 living in doubled-up homeless situations
• 24 in shelters
• 7 in motels
• 40 of homeless children under the age of 5
• Homelessness among families appears to be
  increasing (38 increase reported by schools
  between 2004-2005 and 2005-2006)

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Setting the Context Children in Foster Care

• Children in the custody of a public child welfare
  agency removed from the home due to abuse or
  neglect
• Living situations vary foster family homes,
  congregate homes, kinship care arrangements
• 28 of children in foster care are ages 0-4
  (142,163 children)
• A 2005 national study found that 40 of toddlers
  and 50 of preschoolers in foster care have high
  developmental and behavioral needs, yet only 23
  of children overall are receiving services for
  these issues

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Issues Facing Homeless Children and Foster
Children

• Mobility - loss of structure, routine, stability
• Trauma and loss
• Deep poverty (mean income of homeless families is
  46 of poverty many homeless families also work
  and are still homeless)
• Higher rates of developmental delays
• Higher rates of chronic and acute health problems
  
• Mental health issues stress, anxiety, and
  depression
• Disrupted or stressed attachments to caregivers
• Invisibility

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Head Start Findings

• Compared to non-homeless children served by Head
  Start (1999 HS demonstration programs), homeless
  children have
• Greater developmental delays (language)
• More learning disabilities
• More mental health problems
• Higher frequency of withdrawal, shyness,
  separation anxiety, short attention disorder,
  flat affect, aggression, hoarding, anxiety in
  response to changes in environment or staff
  absences, concern over getting enough food, and
  sharing toys

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Barriers to Head StartACF-IM-92-12

• Lack of available slots and programs due to
  insufficient Head Start funding
• High mobility - prevents homeless and foster
  children from reaching the top of waiting lists
  also interferes with continued participation
• Program enrollment requirements (residency, birth
  certificates, immunizations, documentation of
  income)
• Lack of transportation to participate, both
  during and after loss of housing or foster care
  placement
• Lack of awareness of homelessness/foster care
  (invisibility)

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Head Start Reauthorization and the
McKinney-Vento Act

• Numerous provisions in the Head Start
  reauthorization reference the McKinney-Vento
  Homeless Assistance Act, including forthcoming
  regulations and many collaboration requirements
• McKinney-Vento originally enacted in 1987
  reauthorized in 2002 by NCLB (Title X, Part C)
• Main themes
• Stability
• Access
• Support for success
• Child-centered, best interest decision making

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McKinney-Vento Personnel

• Every SEA has an Office of State Coordinator for
  the Education of Homeless Children and Youth
• Collaboration responsibilities across agencies
  and with communities
• Technical assistance to LEAs
• Compliance
• Professional development
• Data collection and reporting

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McKinney-Vento Personnel

• Every LEA must designate a liaison for students
  in homeless situations
• Responsibilities
• Ensure that children and youth in homeless
  situations are identified through school and
  community
• Ensure that homeless students enroll in and have
  full and equal opportunity to succeed in school
• Link with health, mental health, and other
  services, including ensuring that homeless
  children receive Head Start and preschool
  programs administered by school districts

14
Local HomelessEducation Liaisons (cont.)

• Inform parents, guardians, or youth of
  educational and parent involvement opportunities
• Post public notice of educational rights
• Resolve disputes
• Inform parents, guardians, or youth of
  transportation services, including to the school
  of origin

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McKinney-Vento at a Glance

• School Stability
• Transportation
• Immediate Enrollment
• Enrolled During Disputes
• Comparable Services
• Covers preschool programs administered by LEAs
• Authorized at 70 million funded at 64 million
• 5 of school districts receive subgrants those
  districts served 50 of all identified homeless
  children (including 18,673 preschool children)
• Up for reauthorization with NCLB
• Title I set-aside for homeless students

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Head Start Reauthorization Eligibility of
Foster Children

• Current regulations
• Children in foster care are eligible even if
  family income exceeds guidelines

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Head Start Reauthorization Eligibility for
Homeless Children

• Homeless children are categorically eligible for
  Head Start
• Head Start programs can serve an additional 35
  with family income below 130 of poverty line if
  policies and procedures to ensure meeting the
  needs of low-income and homeless before children
  up to 130 of poverty
• 42 U.S.C. 9840(a)(1)(B)

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Head Start Reauthorization Enrollment of
Homeless Children

• Requires Secretary to issue regulations to remove
  barriers to the enrollment and participation of
  homeless children, including requiring Head Start
  agencies
• 1) to implement policies and procedures to ensure
  that homeless children are identified and
  prioritized for enrollment

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Head Start Reauthorization Enrollment of
Homeless Children

• 2) to allow families of homeless children to
  apply to, enroll in, and attend Head Start
  programs while required documents, such as proof
  of residency, immunization and other medical
  records, birth certificates, and other documents,
  are obtained within a reasonable time frame and
• 3) to coordinate individual Head Start programs
  with efforts to implement subtitle B of title
  VIII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance
  Act (42 U.S.S. 11431 et seq.)

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Head Start Reauthorization Enrollment Report
Language

• It is the intent of the Conferees that Head
  Start agencies, in carrying out the requirements
  of paragraph (1), employ a variety of strategies
  to help remove barriers to the enrollment and
  participation of homeless children in Head Start,
  including conducting targeted recruitment of
  homeless children, including homelessness as a
  priority criterion in selection policies,
  reserving slots for homeless children, filling
  vacancies with homeless children, and other
  activities as determined necessary by the
  community-wide needs assessment..

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Head Start Reauthorization Enrollment Report
Language

• In addition to these strategies, Head Start
  agencies may find it appropriate, in some
  instances, to place a homeless child ahead of
  other eligible children on waiting lists in order
  to address their mobility and special needs. In
  general, when a grantee works on its
  community-wide needs assessment, it should ensure
  that it accounts for homeless families. Grantees
  are encouraged to engage school district homeless
  liaisons, private and public shelter providers,
  HUD Continuums of Care, and other homeless
  service agencies in the community-wide needs
  assessment.

22
Head Start Reauthorization Increasing Access

• Issues for Regulations/Implementation
• Identification
• Prioritization
• Reasonable time frame
• Licensing requirements
• Placement stability
• Transportation
• Coordination
• Confidentiality/information-sharing

23
Head Start Reauthorization New Programs

• Requires as a criteria for applicants for new
  Head Start programs a plan to meet the needs of
  homeless children and children in foster care,
  including transportation needs

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Criteria in Allocating Funds to Expand Existing
Programs

• The extent to which applicants have undertaken
  community-wide strategic planning and needs
  assessments involving the LEA homeless liaison,
  and organizations providing services to children
  in foster care, homeless children, child abuse
  prevention services, protective services
• The extent to which applicants coordinate with
  LEA homeless liaisons

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Collaboration and Coordination

• Requires Head Start agencies to coordinate and
  collaborate with the agencies responsible for
  administering section 106 of the Child Abuse
  Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a),
  parts B and E of title IV of the Social Security
  Act (42 U.S.C. 620 et seq. and 670 et seq.), and
  programs under Subtitle VII-B of the
  McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
• Requires each Head Start program to establish
  channels of communication between Head Start
  staff and McKinney-Vento liaisons to facilitate
  coordination of programs

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Collaboration and Coordination

• Requires Head Start programs to develop and
  implement a family outreach and support program
  in coordination with outreach efforts under the
  McKinney-Vento Act
• Requires Head Start State Collaboration Directors
  to develop a strategic plan that will enhance
  collaboration and coordination with and services
  provided for homeless children, children in
  foster care, and children referred to Head Start
  programs by child welfare agencies, including
  agencies and State officials responsible for such
  services

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Early Head Start

• Requires Early Head Start programs to coordinate
  services with programs in the community for
  homeless infants and toddlers

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Quality Standards

• Requires the Secretary to establish standards for
  Head Start agencies, through regulation, taking
  into consideration best practices with respect to
  homeless children and children in foster care,
  and changes in the population of children who are
  eligible to participate in Head Start programs,
  including the family structure of such children
  (including children in foster care and the number
  of homeless children)

29
Training and Technical Assistance

• Requires the Secretary to provide technical
  assistance to improve outreach to, increase
  program participation of, and improve quality of
  services available to meet the unique needs of
  homeless children
• Requires the Secretary to provide, either
  directly or through grants or other arrangements,
  to support training for personnel providing
  services to children determined to be abused or
  neglected or children referred by or receiving
  child welfare services, and to address the needs
  of homeless families

30
Data Collection and Reporting

• Requires Head Start programs to collect data on
  the number of homeless children and children in
  foster care participating in the program
• Requires the Secretary to prepare a report on the
  status of children in Head Start programs,
  including homeless children, children in foster
  care, and children referred by child welfare
  agencies

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Next Steps Working Together

• Identify state and local coordinators
• Joint trainings and materials at state, local,
  and national level (webinars, etc)
• Identify and share best practices
• Liaisons - identification expertise in
  accessing services (housing) help transitioning
  to school expedited evaluations shared
  resources school access through McKinney-Vento
• HUD Continuums of Care
• Advocacy on appropriations, regulations, and
  more

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Resources

• National Association for the Education of
  Homeless Children and Youth -
• http//www.naehcy.org
• National Center on Homeless Education -
• http//www.serve.org/nche
• National Law Center on Homelessness Poverty -
• http//www.nlchp.org
• Horizons for Homeless Children -
• http//www.horizonsforhomelesschildren.org

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Save the Date(s)

• 3rd National Young Children Without Homes
  Conference
• April 15-17
• Boston, MA
• www.horizonsforhomelesschildren.org
• NAEHCY 20th Annual Conference
• Oct 31-Nov. 3, 2008
• Crystal City, VA
• www.naehcy.org

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Contact Information

• Barbara Duffield, Policy Director, NAEHCY
• 4701 Connecticut Avenue, NW, 402
• Washington DC 20008
• Phone [phone]
• Fax [phone]
• bduffield_at_naehcy.org