Homeless and Foster Youth

Homeless and Foster Youth

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (McKinney-Vento Act) (42 U.S.C. § 11431-11435) is federal legislation that ensures the educational rights and protections of children and youths experiencing homelessness. It requires all local educational agencies (LEAs) to ensure that homeless students have access to the same free, appropriate public education, including public preschools, as provided to other children and youths. The McKinney-Vento Act defines LEAs as public school districts, direct-funded and locally funded charter schools, and county offices of education. The McKinney-Vento Act also authorizes the funding for the federal Education for Homeless Children and Youths Program.

McKinney-Vento Definition of Homeless U.S.C. § 11434a(2)
The term “homeless children and youth”—

means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence…; and
includes —
i. children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; or are abandoned in hospitals;
ii. children and youths who 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…;
iii. children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and
iv. migratory children who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (i) through (iii).

For questions, concerns, or additional resources, please contact our Homeless and Foster Youth Liaison below. Or if you would like to setup an Intake Meeting, please contact the school or liaison.

Name: Teresa Adams

Title: Assistant Principal

Phone: (760) 949-8002

E-Mail: [email protected]

View our Homeless Education Policy

Supports and Resources

For a list of resources, please visit the San Bernardino County Children and Family Services Division.

For a list of support through the California Department of Education, please visit Foster Youth Services Program Resources.

If your children need clothing, please visit: https://www.findhelp.org/goods/clothing--san-bernardino-ca

Give Something Back Mentorship/Scholarship Program

San Bernardino County has shared an excellent resource, Give Something Back is looking for 20 eighth grade students that are or have experienced foster care, homelessness, or the incarceration of a parent. There is no GPA requirement any longer. Please find the below links to learn more about Give Something Back or this excellent opportunity!