Homelessness Assessment Report

Every New Yorker has the right to a safe and affordable place to live in. New York’s shortage of affordable housing has reached a crisis point. Poor and elderly people throughout New York City are at a greater risk of homelessness and forced low-income residents do not have food or medical care to stay in their homes. A sinful structure of homelessness in New York City is New York’s shortage of affordable housing. Millions of New Yorkers are desperate to find affordable housing and tens of thousands are forced to live either in dirty shelters or on the streets. Recent data indicates that nearly 60,000 people, including more than 23,000 children, stay in the city’s main homeless shelter system (Guelpa). A small amount of poor renter households received a housing subsidy from the local government. Little assistance is being provided which means that most poor families and individuals that seek assistance

The author, Barbara Duffield, Policy Director for National Association for the education of homeless children and youth, writes for CQ Researcher the article “Should federal agencies use the same definitions of homelessness?” Duffield aims to substantiate that federal agencies, using different definitions of the law create complications. That clear guidelines need defined for establishing what is best for families and youth found in a homeless situation. Justification for changing the definition of

In 1988 expand eligible activities and to modify the distribution of McKinney funds. In 1990 to create new programs such the Shelter Plus Care program, which provides housing assistance to homeless individuals with disabilities, mental illness, AIDS, and drug or alcohol addiction, and a demonstration program within the Health Care for the Homeless program to provide primary health care and outreach to at-risk and homeless children. The amendment also specified obligation of states and local educational agencies in assuring the access of homeless children and youth to public education due to the lack of education received by homeless children and high drop-out rate for homeless youth.1992 amendment modified and expanded the Title IV, the shelter, and housing provisions. With certain vulnerable population such as those with mental illness and addiction becoming more homeless than others. Lastly, in 1994 Congress amended the Education of the Homeless Children

Homelessness is a major problem in the United States. An incredibly vulnerable group is the homeless youth due to their young age and lack of education. According to Edidin, Ganim, Hunter, & Karnik (2012) on any particular night in the United States there are ~2 million homeless youth living on the streets, in shelters, or in other temporary accommodation. Youth become homeless for multiple reasons whether it be because they have aged out of foster care, ran from home, were kicked out of their home, or because they have become homeless along with their family members. Within the umbrella categorization of homeless youth there are high at risk subgroups, common misconceptions, and a serious concern of lack of support and medical services.

Fifteen items were listed and the survey asked how much the social worker, on a scale from one to five, saw the given item as a barrier. The fifteen items included but are not limited to: transience, identification, attendance, communication, personal resources, school administration, community resources, and embarrassment. Other information was gathered such as the level of licensure held, the location the social worker works at, the number of years they have practiced, and their level of awareness about homelessness. The results show that each of the fifteen items was seen as a barrier when dealing with homeless children by the participants of the study. The most widely seen barrier was transience, meaning the students have had to frequently move around a lot, which has hindered their ability to learn. Transience leads to low attendance and is correlated with poor academic performance. (Canfield, 2014) School administration was the closest to being perceived as a facilitator and not a barrier, but was still viewed as a barrier by the

Being able to stay rent free and being provided home cooked meals will give them the opportunity to work and build their finance. The community could even give them jobs to work that way they can spend time with their families and work on themselves. By building the schools, the youth not only will have places to live and food to eat, but easy access to the classroom close to home. The Plos medicine editors states " But charities such as Crisis and Shelter are already warning that the risk of homelessness for many people is closer than we have previously assumed and now more than ever, homeless people can no longer be considered outside of society. Political will at the highest level is needed to put them back into the mainstream political and therefore health and social agenda." (Plos medicine, 5) Ignoring the fact that people need help is unebenfital for society because this allows ofr people who are homeless but have a lot of potiential to be left on the backburner and forgotten. There are many homeless youth roaming through the united states , and to deny them of the same support other finaicla youth receive, is to completely attempt to stop someones life before it even

With the informing of the nation, next comes the awareness of the government. The most influential Americans, the ones capable of written, federal change, have turned an ear to the cause. Legislation so far has helped greatly. Acts like the Housing and Community Act of 1974, which gave housing opportunities for lower income families, and the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, an organization aimed at helping communities and with which the Education for Homeless Children and Youth program was added to in 1987, have supported the cause to this day. The aforementioned Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program ensured homeless children and youth equal access to an education. Even with this help, many schools found conflict arising in areas such as residency, guardian requirements, incomplete or missing documentation (Dealing with 114). There is

First, government provides housing assistance to low-income families. Low-income families just need pay 30% of their total income for rent. Second, mainstream programs provide a safety net for homelessness. This net makes mainstream programs like housing assistance, welfare, and substance support could provide what homelessness need quickly. Third, Communities created a data system to record information about homelessness. These information could be analyzed to help people know the cause of people become homeless, how long people become homeless, what exactly homeless people need, and the effect of mainstream’s support. Government already saw some positive influence of these programs. The number of family homelessness decreased 43 percent in Hennepin Country. New York creased 11 percent of homeless families was placed by a permanent housing. (National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2010)

Homelessness is a prime concern for numerous countries across the globe, including the most advanced ones. Though the population of homeless people tends to be higher in developing countries, it is still a concern in developed nations. Homelessness is a state where someone lacks regular shelter. The term includes people who do not have a home and sleep on the streets, as well as those whose basic nighttime residence is a homeless shelter or other improvised form of housing. Such people lack the capacity to acquire or maintain sufficient nighttime shelter. Individuals and family units become homeless for many reasons. Assessing these causes can help to mitigate the issue.

Giffords, E., Alonso, C., & Bell, R. (2007). A Transitional Living Program for Homeless Adolescents: A Case Study. Child & Youth Care Forum, 36(4), 141-151. doi:10.1007/s10566-007-9036-0

The McKinney-Vento Act not only provides immediate shelter and food to the homeless, but it also guarantees a homeless child’s right to an education. McKinney-Vento assures that homeless students who struggle attending school have access to a proper education and gain other necessary services necessary (Katel). The McKinney-Vento Act recognizes the importance of an education by providing homeless students with basic educational rights, transportation and other basic school necessities. Although there are still major complications in educating homeless students, this act

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (McKinney-Vento) covers many aspects of homelessness. The original Act contained 15 different programs for people who were homeless (United States Department of Housing and Urban Development [HUD], 2007). I will be focusing on Title VII-B of this act. This section of McKinney-Vento speaks to homeless children and their right to equal access to an appropriate public school education. This Act has been in existence since 1987. Due to school performance standards put in place by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, this specific section of the McKinney-Vento Act has been reauthorized to include new mandates (United States Department of Education [DE], 2004).

The McKinney Vento policy was designed to assist homeless children and youth by providing an equal educational service to those who are at risk of being homeless. This policy has enforced individuals who are homeless will have the same right as other students. It is significant to note that this policy was created and designed to disregard any possible barriers and help the student achieve student success. (Barrow County School System, n.d.)

Homeless families with children represent the fastest growing segment of the homeless population; in fact, they constitute about 40 percent of all people who are homeless (Stronge 7). In addition, the most recent estimate of homeless children and youngsters by the United States Department of Education is 744,000 (Stronge 7). These statistics are indeed quite frightening, and they go to show that children constitute a large part of the homeless dilemma. The part of that dilemma that seems most taxing is that of educating such homeless children. How can these kids become active members of society if they are unable to receive a proper public education, the same education that is provided for so many other kids under the Constitution?

The McKinney‐Vento Homeless Assistance Act, reauthorized in December 2001, ensures educational rights and protections for children and youth experiencing homelessness (CDE). Make sure that any students identified as homeless enroll in school, and receive the same opportunity to do well in school. Make sure that homeless families be provided with any services they are eligible for. Homeless Liaison assists students at Angela Davis College Prep.