Homeless with Homework

Talk about trickle-down: As a result of joblessness, foreclosures, and rising homelessness, public schools across the country are grappling with rapid increases in the number of students without a place to call home. This "tidal wave" of homeless students has critical ramifications for both a future generation and the overburdened public school system.

Although MSNBC picked up this story yesterday, this issue is not getting anywhere near the amount of attention it deserves. Homelessness among grade school students has increased so rapidly in some areas that many schools are having trouble keeping up. Not only are school liaisons for homeless students overloaded with demand, but the immediate costs of keeping homeless students up to par with their housed classmates (while an excellent use of money in the long run) can put a strain on school budgets.

In 2007-2008, the last school year for which data is available, the nation's 14,000 public school districts counted more than 780,000 homeless students. That's a 15 percent increase (!) from the previous year.

While McKinney-Vento is in place to keep homeless students from falling behind their housed peers, it doesn't always address the trauma of being uprooted. Here's an excerpt from MSNBC:

Research shows that the turmoil of homelessness often hinders children's ability to socialize and learn. Many are plagued by hunger, exhaustion, abuse and insecurity. They have a hard time performing at grade level and are about 50 percent less likely to graduate from high school than their peers.

"Homeless children are confronted daily by extremely stressful and traumatic experiences that have profound effects on their cognitive development and ability to learn," said Ellen Bassuk, a Harvard Medical School psychiatry professor and president of the nonprofit National Center on Family Homelessness. "They tend to have high rates of developmental delays, learning difficulties and emotional problems as a product of precarious living situations and extreme poverty."

Anyone who has ever spent time with kids at a homeless shelter can probably vouch for the accuracy of that statement. The trauma of being uprooted from your home and moving into a crowded and unfamiliar living situation is really tough on a young kid. It's not uncommon for kids of all ages (preschool to high school-aged) to exhibit signs of trauma or depression once they move into a shelter. You can only imagine how this affects their performance in school.

Although the "point in time" count- a one night census of homelessness in America- was conducted nationwide just this past January, looking to the schools provide a much more accurate picture of homelessness in America. Under McKinney-Vento, "homeless" includes all of those included in HUD's definition (those on the streets, in shelters, or places not meant for human habitation) but also includes those who are "doubled up." That makes this "tidal wave" of homeless students even more alarming.

Thankfully, help is on the way for homeless students. The stimulus package will provide a much-needed cash injection for schools trying to keep up with unhoused students as well as $1.5 billion for homeless prevention and rapid rehousing.

But this is hardly a relief for the thousands of kids without a place to call home.

[Photo from MSNBC: "Daniel Valdez, background, with mother Mary Aguilar and two brothers in Oxnard, California."]