In early 2021, the U.S. Department of Education allocated $800 million via the American Rescue Plan and Secondary School Emergency Relief - Homeless Children and Youth (ARP-HCY) Fund to address the extraordinary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and youth experiencing homelessness. Both State education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) are to utilize the ARP-HCY funds to expand and improve systems in the areas of identification, enrollment, participation, and success in schools for children and youth experiencing homelessness.

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act was passed in 1987 and was most recently amended by Title IX, Part A of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in December 2015. Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act authorizes the federal Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) Grant Program and serves as the primary federal legislation to remove barriers to education created by homelessness.

Updates

Homeless Education program updates can be found here and will be updated often.

Federal Regulations

Local educational agencies (LEAs) are required to ensure that the rights and services guaranteed in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act are implemented for all students experiencing homelessness. All LEAs must follow the requirements of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, regardless of if they are a recipient of an Education of Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) subgrant.

Overview

All Local Education Agencies (LEAs), including charter districts, are required to report reliable, valid, and comprehensive data on homeless children and youth (HCY) and unaccompanied homeless youth (UHY) to the State Education Agency (SEA), as mandated by 42 U.S.C. § 11432 (g)(6)(C). These data are reported to the U.S.

It is important to understand the McKinney-Vento Act’s definition of “homeless” as it applies to children and youth.  Learn about the basic federal laws that pertain to homeless youth.  You can read the McKinney Vento Act in its entirety and use for citation.  The Non-Regulatory Guidance is the most frequented document, to look for questions and answers.  Title 1, Part A is set aside funding for McKinney Vento students and many resources are available to help with how to ut