Homelessness & Education Resources

This form is to be completed when a student first enrolls, and any time a change in housing status occurs. There are no wrong answers. This form may be filled out independently, or the McKinney-Vento Liaison can assist. To access a list of McKinney-Vento Liaisons, please visit https://www.nysteachs.org/liaisons

Refer to this page when supporting a family. Do not hand this form to families.

✓ Ensure placement of a housing questionnaire within the first few pages of the registration packet (paper or electronic).

✓ NYSED requires implementation and administration of a housing questionnaire at the time of enrollment and upon any change of address.

This law addresses a parent’s power to designate a “person in parental relation” to a child. If a parent is unable to make education-related or medical decisions for a child, they may temporarily designate another person to make those decisions on behalf of the student.

Also, view and download the Designation of Person in Parental Relation Forms.

This NCHE resource is useful to determine whether youth on their own are McKinney-Vento-eligible.

United States Department of Education

On March 2, 2017, the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) revised the Non-Regulatory Guidance for the Education for Homeless Children and Youths Program. This revised Non-Regulatory Guidance replaces the July 2016 Guidance and includes new questions and answers on the amendments to the McKinney-Vento Act made by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which took effect on October 1, 2016, and new technical assistance on promising practices for implementing homeless education requirements at the State and local levels.

This NCHE brief:

summarizes the key provisions of Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act related to the identification of children and youth experiencing homelessness; and
provides an overview of implementation strategies at the state and local levels.

NYS-TEACHS
The McKinney-Vento Enrollment Checklist, developed by NYS-TEACHS, outlines steps McKinney-Vento liaisons should take when enrolling students experiencing homelessness. The checklist includes links to key documents and referrals.

View and download many more resources about Unaccompanied Youth from our Resources Library on this website.

NRS’ Home Free Program, a collaboration with Greyhound Lines, helps reunite runaway youth with their families, or an alternative living arrangement, through a free bus ticket home. The program has reunited more than 17,000 youth with their families. By connecting to NRS at 1-800-RUNAWAY or 1800RUNAWAY.org, youth can initiate the process to return home or to a safe alternative.

This NCHE brief includes a summary of education legislation prior to 2012 that gives unaccompanied homeless youth access to educational supports and provides examples of practices that high schools, colleges, and universities have used to assist these students in succeeding.

Please note: this guidance does not include changes made by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) which added new protections for students in temporary housing.

School districts may develop a caregiver form that establishes the responsibilities of caregivers and requests caregivers’ contact information in place of traditional proof of guardianship for unaccompanied youth. This form is not required, but may be helpful to schools and to students. Such forms should be carefully created to avoid barriers to a student’s full participation in school and should never lead to delays in enrollment because unaccompanied youth are entitled to immediate enrollment under the McKinney-Vento Act. 42 U.S.C. § 11432(g)(3)(C).

This Guidance from the Family Policy Compliance Office (FPCO) at the U.S. Department of Education, “Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Disclosure of Student Information Related to Emergencies and Disasters,” includes information that can help unaccompanied youth and their caregivers in accessing student educational records. The Guidance clarifies in question 3 that caregivers can access a student’s educational records, even if they are not legal guardians and are not related to the student. The Guidance also explains in questions 5 and 6 that schools can give unaccompanied youth full access to their own records, even when they are under 18. (After they turn 18, students also have the right to access their records.)