Supporting Young Children Under Age Six Experiencing Homelessness - Mandatory Compliance Training, May 2024
This 1.5-hour-long professional learning session and the following Q&A Office Hour which will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of the requirement to identify and support the unique needs of young children under the age of six experiencing homelessness. While all LEAs may not maintain programs for children under age six, it is still a requirement for all Liaisons to ensure that "homeless families and homeless children and youths have access to and receive educational services for which such families, children, and youths are eligible, including services through Head Start programs (including Early Head Start programs) under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), early intervention services under part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), and other preschool programs.” 42 U.S.C. § 11432(g)(6)(A)(iii)
We are excited to partner with SchoolHouse Connection's (SHC) Sarah Vrabic for this important session! As SHC's Early Childhood Senior Program Manager, Sarah Vrabic works to overcome homelessness through education by helping to provide practical assistance to better identify infants, toddlers, and expectant parents experiencing homelessness and connect them to high-quality early childhood developmental programs and supports. Prior to starting at SHC, Sarah worked within the Philadelphia family emergency shelter system for a decade, facilitating cross-systems collaboration between homeless housing programs and early childhood education programs, as well as managing the Everyday Learning Play Spaces initiative. This initiative worked to redesign shelter spaces to be more developmentally friendly for young children and their families, elevating the family perspective by integrating child and caregiver needs and wishes into each design.
Session Materials
End-of-Year Process and Procedures – Mandatory Compliance Training, April 2024
This 1.5-hour-long professional learning session and the following 30-minute Q&A opportunity will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of requirements and strategies to notify parents, guardians, caregivers, and students of McKinney-Vento eligibility end dates, prepare to conduct timely re-eligibility determinations for the coming school year, and ensure data reporting compliance at the conclusion of the current school year.
Session Materials
Partnering with Community-Based Organizations – Mandatory Compliance Training, March 2024
This 1.5-hour-long professional learning session and the following 30-minute Q&A opportunity will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of the requirement to establish and develop partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs) to participate in the diverse network of collaborative partners supporting children, youth, and families experiencing homelessness.
Throughout this session, Liaisons will learn effective methods to establish and maintain partnerships through the sharing of ideas and examples from the field.
Session Materials
Supporting Unaccompanied Homeless Youth (UHY) - Mandatory Compliance Training, Early March 2024
This 1.5-hour-long professional learning session and the following 30-minute Q&A opportunity will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of the requirement to identify and support the unique needs of unaccompanied students experiencing homelessness. In this session, Liaisons will also learn about the latest provisions of the FAFSA Simplification Act.
We are excited to collaborate with SchoolHouse Connection in this informative session.
Session Materials
Data-Driven Decision-Making – Mandatory Compliance Training, January 2024
This 1.5-hour-long professional learning session and the following 30-minute Q&A opportunity will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of requirements related to collecting, maintaining, utilizing, and reporting reliable, valid, and comprehensive data related to children and youth experiencing homelessness.
We are excited to collaborate with NCHE in this session to provide additional context as the U.S. Department of Education’s technical assistance and information center for the federal Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) Program.
Session Materials
Eligibility Determinations, Best Interest Determinations (BIDs), Managing Disputes, & Providing Written Notification – Mandatory Compliance Training, December 2023
This hour-long professional learning session and the following Q&A Office Hour will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of requirements related to making eligibility determinations, conducting Best Interest Determinations (BIDs), managing disputes, and ensuring that written notification is provided.
Session Materials
Frequently Asked Questions: Office Hours for Discussion and Collaboration, November 2023
This two-hour-long session will provide McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons and support personnel with a brief description of requirements, followed by an opportunity to ask questions and discuss solutions related to frequently requested topics such as forms and guidance documents, eligibility determination scenarios, internal data tracking procedures, and transportation for students experiencing homelessness.
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Transportation for Students Experiencing Homelessness – Mandatory Compliance Training, October 2023
This hour-long professional learning session and the following Q&A Office Hour will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of requirements and best practices to provide students experiencing homelessness with transportation to their school of origin. We are excited to partner with Jason Nelson, Transportation Program Manager with Arizona School Risk Retention Trust, Inc., for this session. With over 13 years in the transportation industry, Jason has driven a bus, held positions of dispatch and routing, and supervised a transportation department of more than 100 employees. He demonstrates his passion for pupil transportation, having served as a board member for the Arizona Association of Pupil Transportation (AAPT) and the Transportation Administrators of Arizona (TAA) presidency. Jason has a "can-do" attitude and is passionate about enhancing school bus transportation in the state of Arizona.
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Awareness and District Professional Development – Mandatory Compliance Training, September 2023
This hour-long professional learning session and the following Q&A Office Hour will inform McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons of their requirements to ensure student, parent/guardian, and community awareness of the McKinney-Vento Act, as well as provide professional development for all district and school personnel.
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McKinney-Vento in Practice - Mandatory Compliance Training, August 2023
This professional learning session will prepare district and site McKinney-Vento Homeless Liaisons and other personnel responsible for identifying, enrolling, and servicing students experiencing homelessness to ensure compliance with the federal statutory requirements of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
This session will cover the following topics:
- a quick and comprehensive overview of the Homeless Education Program (HEP);
- an overview of programmatic requirements to ensure compliance with federal statute; and
- required tools to equip and empower designated program personnel.
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