The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act for Homeless Children and Youth entitles all homeless school-aged children to the same free and appropriate education that is provided to non-homeless students. A homeless youth is defined as a child who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence and includes children and youth who: are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; may be living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or shelters; have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings; are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; or are migratory children who qualify as homeless because of similar living circumstances. To ensure that the School identifies all homeless and unaccompanied youths enrolled at the School, a housing questionnaire is administered at least once a year. The questionnaire can be made available in the primary language of the student’s parent or unaccompanied youth upon request.
Unaccompanied youth who meet the definition of homeless youth are also eligible for rights and services under the McKinney-Vento Act. An unaccompanied youth is defined as a minor who is not in the physical custody of a parent.
