360-Degrees of Homelessness – Homelessness Through the Eyes of a Child (Part 2)

According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, “At least 1.35 million children are homeless during the year; 200,000 are homeless on any given day.”

In the second part of the series the Castellio’s eldest daughter shares what it is like for her –why she feels it necessary to hide her family’s circumstances from her friends and kids at school.

She is bright and articulate and shows no visible signs of being without a home, often living with her 2 brothers and little sister in the family van.

“What homeless children need most of all is a home.  While they are experiencing homelessness, however, it is essential that children remain in school.  School is one of the few stable, secure places in the lives of homeless children and youth — a place where they can acquire the skills needed to help them escape poverty.” (National Coalition for the Homeless)

Still the Castellio daughter manages to make all A’s and B’s during the many months that her family is homeless.

“Families with children are by most accounts among the fastest growing segments of the homeless population. In the United States an estimated 1.35 million from 600 thousand families will experience homelessness today, while 3.8 million more will live in “precarious housing situations.” [1] Put another way, of every 200 children in America, 3 will be homeless today and more than double that number will be at risk for homelessness. [2]

Homelessness has a devastating impact on children and youths’ educational opportunities. Residency requirements, guardianship requirements, delays in transfer of school records, lack of transportation, and lack of immunization records often prevent homeless children from enrolling in school. Homeless children and youth who are able to enroll in school still face barriers to regular attendance: while 87% of homeless youth are enrolled in school, only 77% attend school regularly. [3]

According to recent federal data, during the 2007-2008 school year 794,617 homeless children and youth were enrolled in public schools. This number, however, is an underestimate, as not all school districts report data to the U.S. Department of Education, and because the data collected represents only those children identified and enrolled in school. Furthermore, the number does not include all preschool-age children, or any infants and toddlers.

Living arrangements for homeless children can be highly improvisational. These situations are often precarious, unstable, and, at times, dangerous. Of children who schools identified as homeless during the 2007-2008 school year, 22% lived in shelters, 65% lived with other family members or friends, 7% lived in motels, and 6% lived without shelter. [4]

In addition to enrollment problems, the high mobility associated with homelessness has severe educational consequences. Homeless families move frequently due to limits to length of shelter stays, search for safe and affordable housing or employment, or to escape abusive family members. Too often, homeless children have to change schools because shelters or other temporary accommodations are not located within their school district. Homeless children and youth frequently transfer schools multiple times in a single year because of these conditions.

Every time a child has to change schools, his or her education is disrupted. According to the Institute for Children and Poverty, homeless children are nine times more likely to repeat a grade, four times more likely to drop out of school, and three times more likely to be placed in special education programs than their housed peers.” [5]

SOURCES:

Institute for Children and Poverty. (2008). “National Data on Family Homelessness.” Retrieved September 21, 2009 from http://www.icpny.org/index.asp?CID=7.

Data compiled using Data from the Institute for Children and Poverty. (2008). “National Data on Family Homelessness.” Retrieved September 21, 2009 from http://www.icpny.org/index.asp?CID=7. and from the U.S. Census Bureau (2009). Retrieved September 21, 2009 from http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-qr_name=ACS_2007_3YR_G00_DP3YR2&-ds_name=ACS_2007_3YR_G00_&-_lang=en&-_sse=on

U.S. Department of Education. “Education OF Homeless Youth Program: Learning to Succeed.” Retrieved September 21, 2009 from http://www.ed.gov/offices/OUS/PES/esed/learnsucceed/exec_sum.html

The National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY). “Facts About the Education of Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness.” Retrieved September 21, 2009 from http://naehcy.org/facts.html#why.

Institute for Children and Poverty. (2008). “National Data on Family Homelessness.” Retrieved September 21, 2009 from http://www.icpny.org/PDF/reports/AccesstoSuccess.pdf?Submit1=Free+Download.

“Growing numbers of Americans who have lost houses to foreclosure are landing in homeless shelters, according to social service groups and a recent report by a coalition of housing advocates.

Only three years ago, foreclosure was rarely a factor in how people became homeless. But among the homeless people that social service agencies have helped over the last year, an average of 10 percent lost homes to foreclosure, according to “Foreclosure to Homelessness 2009,” a survey produced by the National Coalition for the Homeless and six other advocacy groups.

In the Midwest, foreclosure played a role for 15 percent of newly homeless people, according to the survey, reflecting soaring rates of unemployment — Ohio’s reached 10.8 percent in August — and aggressive lending to people with damaged credit.

Most people who become homeless because of foreclosure had been low-income renters whose landlords stopped making their mortgage payments, leaving them scrambling for new housing with little notice and scant savings, according to the survey and interviews with shelters.” (NYT, Published: October 18, 2009)

In Part 3, the Castellio’s live through the challenges of navigating the social services system to get subsidized housing, while seeking work and tending to the basic needs of their children. The Catch-22’s are apparent. They can’t qualify for housing unless they have employment, but can’t get  jobs if they don’t have an address. But, far more challenging is the scarcity of affordable housing in general.

Christopher Castellio says he, “doesn’t want a hand out, but a leg up.”

***

LINKS:

Foreclosures Force Ex-Homeowners to Turn to Shelters http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/19/business/economy/19foreclosed.html?_r=2

Play Stations have replaced playgrounds as primary activity for many children. With obesity reaching near epidemic proportions among adults and children, the federal government has stepped-in  in an attempt to reign in the growing problem –of growing waistlines.

Studies show 8 out of 10 obese children will become obese adults. The statistics are staggering and the evidence apparent when we look around at children.

Added to elementary vocabulary is “Body Mass Index.” It’s the measure by which a person is determined to be at a healthy weight, or not. According to the Center for Disease Control , “BMI is calculated from a person’s weight and height and provides a reasonable indicator of body fatness and weight categories that may lead to health problems.”

As public schools are expected to reinstate physical activity –gym classes lost over the years to budget cuts— so too is infamous cafeteria fare meant to take on a healthier menu of choices.

So here’s what one elementary school did to take the weight off government mandates and take control of the well-being of both students and their families.

For more information:

http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html

http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood/index.html