By Maribel Maria, Policy Associate, HFH and Robyn Schwartz, Policy Advisor, HFH Students’ attendance rates are in the spotlight once again, with media highlighting the rising rates of absenteeism among students across New York City and the nation.1 Notably lacking in many news reports is attention to the alarming absenteeism trends among students experiencing homelessness. More…
This month, the Fair Student Funding (FSF) working group, convened by the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE), will present a list of recommendations for reforming New York City public school system’s Fair Student Funding metric. This metric determines 60% of each public school’s funding. One of the issues up for debate is…
By Caroline Iosso, Senior Policy Associate, Homes for the Homeless (HFH) In a major blow to New York City’s public schools, the City’s FY2023 budget passed in June with a more than $200 million budget cut to the school system. The City Council, which approved the Adams Administration’s plan, has now felt the pressure from…
The integral role that schools play in the lives of students experiencing homelessness and the many challenges they face have never been clearer as the threat of coronavirus continues to grow and schools across the country close. Below are ten things to keep in mind about homeless students amid the COVID-19 crisis. Students and families…
Student homelessness is at an all-time high, with over 1.5 million children nationwide experiencing homelessness over the course of the 2017-18 school year. That is the sobering verdict of a new report released by the National Center on Homeless Education (NCHE). This record-breaking total is an 11% increase over the previous school year and a…
Regular school attendance is a recurring challenge for the 105,000 homeless students in New York City Public Schools. During the 2016–17 school year, 36%, or approximately 36,000, of these students were chronically absent, missing more than 10% of the year, or over three weeks of school. Close to 13,000 students (around 13% of all homeless…
As 1.1 million New York City students head back to school next week, it is important to remember that 1 in 10 students experience homelessness every year, and as a result face unique educational challenges. Since 2010, over 220,000 students experienced housing instability while enrolled in New York City public schools. In fact, the number…
Dr. Ralph da Costa Nunez Over five years ago the de Blasio administration came into office determined to reduce family homelessness. The mayor implemented an ambitious affordable housing plan, pledging to create and preserve some 300,000 units in part to help house the homeless over the next 10 years. Last year, the administration spent $53…
Across America, the number of students experiencing homelessness in rural communities is rising at an unprecedented pace. Montana saw a staggering 145% increase between school years 2013–14 and 2016–17—more than 48 times the 3% national growth rate and second only to Nebraska’s 200% increase. But what accounts for this rapid ‘growth’? Indisputably, the increase of…
One in six English Language Learners (ELLs) in New York City public schools is homeless. While learning science, math, and social studies, these students face the added challenge of learning the English language. Adding to the instability of homelessness, it is common for homeless students to transfer schools mid-year; 22,188 homeless students transferred mid-year in…
The NYC DOE surveys parents, teachers, and students each year to gather information on a host of topics including school safety, investment in learning, and discipline approach. Responses indicate that there is a connection between school climate and suspension rates—the poorer the climate, the higher the suspension rate.…
For homeless students, middle school is a formative time—and what they experience in school can make or break their future opportunities.…