Homelessness is a lack of permanent housing often resulting from extreme poverty; the mean income of families experiencing homelessness is less than half the poverty line.  Additional factors that contribute to homelessness include health problems and domestic violence. It is estimated that at least 10% of all children living in poverty will experience homelessness over the course of a year: 1.35 million children.

While many young people experience homelessness as part of a family, other youth in homeless situations are on their own. They may have been forced to leave home by their parents or run away from home due to severe dysfunction in their families, including grave risks to their safety and well-being.  It is estimated that between 1.6 and 2.8 million youth run away or are forced to leave home each year.

Some common living situations for children and youth experiencing homelessness include:
• Cars and campgrounds
• Parks, abandoned buildings, train or bus stations, under bridges, and other public places
• Emergency shelters, domestic violence shelters, or transitional living programs
• Temporarily sharing the housing of friends or relatives, often sleeping in a garage or common area
• Low-income motel rooms

Children and youth experiencing homelessness face many barriers to educational success, including a lack of many of the most basic survival needs, such as shelter, food, health care, physical safety, healthy surroundings, clothing, and transportation. They are under constant and severe emotional stress. A further barrier to educational success is the lack of school stability caused by the volatility of homelessness. Due to their mobility, 28% of homeless children go to three or more schools in a single year.

The McKinney-Vento Act

Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (hereafter referred to as the McKinney-Vento Act) is a federal law designed to increase the school enrollment, attendance, and success of children and youth experiencing homelessness. The McKinney-Vento Act was passed in 1987 and reauthorized as part of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2001. It is the only federal law dedicated specifically to supporting the educational success of students in homeless situations.
Essentially, the McKinney-Vento Act requires state and local education agencies to provide students experiencing homelessness with school access and support their attendance and success. More information about the Act is available in our Fact Sheets and on the Statutory Framework page.

Many other laws provide children and youth experiencing homelessness with legal protections, including:

• Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act
• Head Start Act
• Higher Education Act
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
• No Child Left Behind Act
• Runaway and Homeless Youth Act

More information about these laws is available on our Statutory Framework page.

Other resources

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