Children & Youth Experiencing Homelessness
The McKinney – Vento Homeless Assistance Act established the Education for Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness Program to ensure homeless youth have access to a free and appropriate public education while removing barriers. The goal is to provide an educational process that continues as uninterrupted as possible while the children are in homeless situations.
The McKinney-Vento Act defines “homeless children and youths” as individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.
The term includes children and youth includes those who are:
· sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason (sometimes referred to as “doubled-up”)
· living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations
· living in emergency or transitional shelters
· abandoned in hospitals
· having 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
· children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings
· migratory children who qualify as homeless because they are living in circumstances described above
· unaccompanied homeless youth are not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. This includes youth who have run away from home, been thrown out of their home, been abandoned by parents or guardians, or separated from their parents for any other reason.
If you are aware of any children in the Greenville Area School District, who may meet the criteria described, please contact the GASD Homeless Liaison, Connie S. Timashenka, at 724-588-2500, ext. 1402 or ctimashenka@greenville.k12.pa.us or school principal. Services and support are available for children & youth experiencing homelessness.
Connie S. Timashenka
Homeless Liaison
724-588-2500, ext. 1402
ctimashenka@greenville.k12.pa.us
