Student Services - Links to Homeless Families

Homelessness is a lack of permanent housing resulting from extreme poverty, or, in the case of unaccompanied youth, the lack of a safe and stable living environment.

• It is our goal to facilitate academic success for students experiencing homelessness by giving students the right to remain in one school despite their residential mobility and guaranteeing access to all appropriate educational opportunities and services.
• It is also our goal to eliminate the barriers that can delay or prevent a homeless student's access to public education.

• Individual & Group Tutorial Assistance
• Transportation
• Payment of Fines/Fees
• Assistance Securing Records
• Summer Enrichment
• Referrals for Health & Social Services
• Facilitating Collaborative Relationships Between Schools & Shelters
• School Placement & Enrollment Assistance
• School Supplies
• Staff Development
• Parent Education & Training

The McKinney-Vento Act is a federal law passed nearly 14 years ago to help people experiencing homelessness. Part of the law protects the rights of children and youth who are homeless, enabling them to go to school. According to the McKinney-Vento Act the term "homeless children and youth" means individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence.

Anyone who, due to a lack of housing, lives:

• In a shelter
• In a motel
• In a vehicle
• In a campground
• On the street
• Doubled up with relatives or friends

Every homeless student has the right to...

• Go to school no matter where they live or how long they've lived there.
• Continue in the school they attended before becoming homeless or the school they last attended.
• Receive transportation to the school they attended before becoming homeless or the school they last attended, if it is feasible and in the best interest of the child.
• Attend school and participate in school programs with children who are not homeless.
• Enroll in school without giving a permanent address.
• Enroll and attend classes while the school arranges for the transfer of school and immunization records or any other documents required for enrollment.
• Enroll and attend classes in the school of choice even while the school and parent/guardian seek to resolve a dispute over enrollment.
• Participate in special programs and receive school services as needed

Irene Hamilton Jones, MAT, Homeless Education Liaison
McKinney-Vento Project Coordinator
M. T. Anderson Support Center
100 Blassingame Road
Greenville, SC 29605
Phone: 864-355-7366 | Fax: 864-355-9754
Email: ihamilto@greenville.k12.sc.us

Cathy Hall, LMSW
McKinney-Vento District Social Worker
Greenville County Schools
(864) 452-0022 office
(864) 520-6866 cell (call or text- preferred contact)
(864) 355-2062 fax