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By Dan Nonte, University Relations
Contact: (336) 334-4314
Posted 10-15-09
GREENSBORO, N.C. — While their classmates are concentrating on lessons, homeless students often are worrying about their next meal or where their family will spend the night. The number of students without stable housing has climbed sharply in recent years due to rising unemployment and foreclosures.
The National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE), part of UNCG’s SERVE Center, is helping school districts, families and schoolchildren meet the educational challenges posed by homelessness. Thanks to a new $4 million contract with the U.S. Department of Education, NCHE will continue to do so for the next five years.
Established in 1998, NCHE is a national clearinghouse of information and technical assistance provider for educators, legislators and families. Its work is more important than ever.
School districts reported almost 800,000 homeless students during the 2007-08 school year, the most recent year for which official statistics are available. That number has likely grown to more than a million, experts say due to the current economic and foreclosure crises. Homelessness figures include families living in shelters, in cars, on the street, in campgrounds, in motels and, most frequently, doubled up in the homes of other families.
Children in homeless families often end up switching schools, and their education suffers.
“High mobility is always a challenge,” says Diana Bowman, NCHE’s director. “When children move from one school to another, they experience educational disruption and lose ground academically. When you have a child who moves two or three times in a year, you have a child who is far behind.”
It is not unusual for homeless children to attend 10 different schools in the course of their basic education, she said. That makes it difficult for teachers to integrate these children into the classroom. Learning disabilities may go undiagnosed and untreated. Families without stable housing often struggle with other basics, like adequate food, clothing and medical care, not to mention the emotional and social tolls.
Part of what the center tries to do is educate school districts and families about relevant federal laws, primarily the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act. One provision of the law, for instance, gives students the right to remain at the same school where they started, even if they have moved to another school zone or district due to homelessness.
Staying at the same school provides students with badly needed stability, but can add to transportation costs for cash-strapped school districts.
Based at the SERVE Center at the North Campus of Gateway University Research Park, NCHE’s five full-time employees compile reports, create educational materials, such as posters, and provide training at state and national conferences. NCHE also operates a toll-free helpline. In September, center employees responded to 443 emails and phone calls from across the country.
“The new contract for the homeless center contributes to the important work of The SERVE Center to build the capacity of states and school districts to provide high quality educational opportunities for all children, especially those who face significant academic challenges,” says Dr. Ludy van Broekhuizen, SERVE’s executive director.
SERVE Center, one of the nation’s 10 regional educational laboratories, provides the best available information to local and state educators and policymakers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina.
For assistance with homeless education issues, contact the NCHE helpline at (800) 308-2145 or homeless@serve.org.