In the United States,
approximately 3.5 million people experience homelessness. Homelessness is not just a national problem
but it exists within the city of Selma and impacts students within the Selma
City Schools District. The depressed
economic climate, high housing costs, increasing unemployment and poverty
within the Selma community causes many families to lose their housing and
become homeless. There are families
forced to leave their home due to abuse, neglect, and family conflict. Such families may reside in a variety of
places, including motels, shelters, shared residences, transitional housing
programs, cars, campgrounds, and others. Their lack of permanent housing can lead to potentially serious
physical, emotional, and mental consequences.
The McKinney Vento
Homeless Assistance Act, which was reauthorized in 2001 by the No Child Left
Behind Act, addresses the problems that the homeless face, specifically the
problems that homeless children and youth encounter as they attempt to succeed
in school. The McKinney Vento Act provides a common definition for
homelessness. It also requires all state and local educational agencies to
develop, review, and revise their policies and practices to remove barriers of
enrollment and retention in school of children and youth experiencing
homelessness. It mandates that children experiencing homelessness receive a
free appropriate education and are provided the same services and opportunities
as their non-homeless peers. This must be done in the mainstream school
environment without harassment, segregation or discrimination.
The Selma
City Schools District will ensure that all children and youth receive a free
appropriate public education and are given meaningful opportunities to succeed
in school. The Selma City Schools District will follow the requirements of the
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. The district views children as
individuals therefore, we will not refer to children as homeless but will refer
to them as children and youth in transition. Under federal law, children and
youth in transition must have access to appropriate public education, including
preschool, and be given a full opportunity to meet state and local academic
achievement standards; therefore, students in transition will be included in
state and district mandated assessments and accountability systems. Local
schools will ensure that children and youth in transition are free from the
stigma associated with homelessness. The
Selma City Schools’ Homeless Coordinator and Guidance and Counseling Coordinate
will collaborate and coordinate work efforts to ensure compliance with the
McKinney Vento Act, identification of students in transition, provision of
services, and other responsibilities associated with meeting the needs of
students who are in transition.