top of page

Tales from the Field: Eligibility and School Selection

Updated: May 24, 2022

In this third installment, NYSTEACHS continues to take a different approach to the blog and share actual calls from the field. We hope that these actual scenarios and the responses to them will help McKinney-Vento liaisons when faced with similar situations in their schools. As always, a wealth of resources are available on our website, include many recordings and documents from our previous webinars and web series.


This week let’s take a look at an eligibility issue:


Scenario: A mother was living in the White Plains school district with two children, a first-grader, and a 7th grader. She loses her housing and was placed in a shelter in White Plains. She kept the first-grader with her in the shelter and placed the older child with her mother (grandmother) in a neighboring district in Hartsdale. Can the older child continue to attend school in Hartsdale?


Questions to ask:

1. Is the family McKinney Vento eligible?

2. Based on McKinney-Vento legislation, is the older child eligible to enroll in Hartsdale?


Resources:

1- Review the McKinney-Vento Act and New York State guidance regarding families and McKinney-Vento eligibility. As always, you can find a wealth of resources on eligibility right here on our NYSTEACHS website.

2- After reviewing the rules on eligibility, if you’re still unsure of what to advise, you are absolutely encouraged to call the helpline for assistance: 1-800-388-2014.


Question 1: Is the Family McKinney-Vento eligible?


Answer: Yes. In this scenario, the mother lost her housing so she placed her older child with a relative. Therefore, the older child is an unaccompanied homeless youth and eligible for McKinney-Vento benefits. 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 youths 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; or abandoned in hospitals; (Education Law §3209(1)(a); 8 NYCRR §100.2(x)(1); see also 42 USC §11434A(2)(B)(i); U.S. DOE’s Non-Regulatory Guidance, Question A-2,)



Question 2: Is the older child eligible to enroll in Hartsdale?



70 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

The Tale: Recently, a woman called the helpline and identified herself as the aunt of a young man who recently arrived from South America. Her nephew is 16 years old and is currently residing with her

The Tale: A mother and her three children were living in your district but due to unpaid rent, the family was evicted. They moved in with an aunt in a district that is 20 miles away from the school di

Many of our helpline calls involve cases with students in temporary housing who are not enrolled immediately and face many barriers to attending school. The Tale: An aunt and uncle took in several of

bottom of page