San Francisco Unified School District and County Office of Education
Board Policy 6173
Education For Children Experiencing Homelessness
This Board Policy applies to the San Francisco Unified School District and the County Office of Education.
The Governing Board believes that the identification of students experiencing homelessness is critical to improving the educational outcomes for such students and ensuring that students experiencing homelessness have access to the same free and appropriate public education provided to other students within the district. The district shall provide students experiencing homelessness with access to education and other services necessary for such students to meet the same challenging academic standards as other students.
(cf. 6011 – Academic Standards)
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that each district school identifies all students experiencing homelessness and unaccompanied youths enrolled at the school. The Superintendent or designee shall administer a housing questionnaire developed by the California Department of Education (CDE) for the purpose of identifying students experiencing homelessness and unaccompanied youths, and shall annually provide the housing questionnaire to all parents/guardians of students and all unaccompanied youths. (Education Code 48851).
If the primary language of a student’s parent/guardian or an unaccompanied youth is not English, either the housing questionnaire shall be made available in the primary language of the student’s parent/guardian or the unaccompanied youth pursuant to Education Code 48985, or an appropriate translation of the housing questionnaire shall be provided upon request of the student’s parent/guardian or an unaccompanied youth. (Education Code 48851)
The Superintendent or designee shall report to CDE the number of students experiencing homelessness, including unaccompanied youths, enrolled in the district as identified from the housing questionnaire described above. (Education Code 48851)
The Superintendent or designee shall review district policies at least once every three years and recommend updates to ensure removal of any barriers to the education of homeless students and unaccompanied youth. Any such review shall address identification, enrollment, and retention of such students, including those barriers that are due to absences or outstanding fees or fines. (Education Code 48851.3, 42 USC 11432)
(cf. 3250 – Transportation Fees)
(cf. 3260 – Fees and Charges)
(cf. 5113.1 – Chronic Absence and Truancy)
When there are at least 15 students experiencing homelessness in the district or a district school, the district’s local control and accountability plan (LCAP) shall include goals and specific actions to improve student achievement and other outcomes of students experiencing homelessness. (Education Code 52052, 52060)
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that information and/or materials for students experiencing homelessness are provided in a manner and form understandable to the student’s parent/guardian and to the unaccompanied youths.
(cf. 0460 – Local Control and Accountability Plan)
The Superintendent or designee shall designate an appropriate staff person to serve as a liaison for children and youths experiencing homelessness. This district liaison shall fulfill the duties specified in 42 USC 11432 to assist in identifying and supporting students experiencing homelessness to succeed in school, and as specified in Education Code 48851.3 related to trainings for district staff providing assistance to students experiencing homelessness.
In addition, the Superintendent or designee shall ensure that the district’s liaison’s contact information and other information on homelessness, including but not limited to information regarding the educational rights and resources available to persons experiencing homelessness, are posted on the district and school websites as specified in the accompanying administrative regulation. (Education Code 48852.6).
Information about the living situation of a student experiencing homelessness shall be considered part of a student’s educational record, subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and shall not be deemed to be directory information as defined in 20 USC 1232g, and shall not be released without written consent. (42 USC 11432)
(cf. 5125 – Student Records)
(cf. 5125.1 – Release of Directory Information)
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that placement decisions for students experiencing homelessness are based on the student’s best interest as defined in law and administrative regulation.
Each homeless student shall be provided services that are comparable to services offered to other students in the school, including, but not limited to, transportation, educational programs for which the student meets the eligibility criteria (such as federal Title I services or similar state or local programs, programs for students with disabilities, and educational programs for English learners), career and technical education programs, programs for gifted and talented students, and school nutrition programs. (42 USC 11432, Education Code 48850)
(cf. 3550 – Food Service/Child Nutrition Program)
(cf. 3553 – Free and Reduced Price Meals)
(cf. 5148.2 – Before/After School Programs)
(cf. 5148.3 – Preschool/Early Childhood Education)
(cf. 6159 – Individualized Education Program)
(cf. 6164.2 – Guidance/Counseling Services)
(cf. 6171 – Title I Programs)
(cf. 6172 – Gifted and Talented Student Program)
(cf. 6174 – Education for English Language Learners)
(cf. 6177 – Summer Learning Programs)
(cf. 6178 – Career and Technical Education)
(cf. 6179 – Supplemental Instruction)
Students experiencing homelessness shall not be segregated into a separate school or program based on their status as homeless and shall not be stigmatized in any way. However, the Superintendent or designee may separate students experiencing homelessness on school grounds as necessary for short periods of time for health and safety emergencies or to provide temporary, special, and supplementary services to meet the unique needs of homeless students. (42 USC 11432, 11433)
(cf. 0410 – Nondiscrimination in District Programs and Activities)
(cf. 3553 – Free and Reduced Price Meals)
The Superintendent or designee shall coordinate with other agencies and entities to ensure that children and youth experiencing homelessness are promptly identified, ensure that homeless students have access to and are in reasonable proximity to available education and related support services, and raise the awareness of school personnel and service providers of the effects of short-term stays in a shelter and other challenges associated with homelessness. Toward these ends, the Superintendent or designee shall collaborate with local social services agencies, other agencies or entities providing services to children and youth experiencing homelessness, and, if applicable, transitional housing facilities. In accordance with the law, the Superintendent or designee shall coordinate transportation, transfer of school records, and other interdistrict activities with other local educational agencies. As necessary, the Superintendent or designee shall coordinate, within the district and with other involved local educational agencies, services for students experiencing homelessness and services for students with disabilities. (42 USC 11432)
(cf. 1020 – Youth Services)
At least annually, the District liaisons and other appropriate staff shall participate in professional development and other technical assistance activities to assist them in identifying and meeting the needs of students experiencing homelessness. Such professional development and technical assistance shall include, but are not limited to, training on the district’s homeless education program policies, definitions of terms related to homelessness, recognition of signs that students are experiencing or are at risk of homelessness, the steps that should be taken once a student who is potentially experiencing homelessness is identified, and how to connect students experiencing homelessness with appropriate housing and service providers. (Education Code 48851.3, 48852.5, (42 USC 11432)
At least annually, the Superintendent or designee shall report to the Board on the identification of and outcomes for students experiencing homelessness, which may include, but are not limited to, housing questionnaire responses, school attendance, student achievement test results, promotion and retention rates by grade level, graduation rates, suspension/expulsion rates, and other outcomes related to any goals and specific actions identified in the LCAP. Based on the evaluation data, the district shall revise its strategies as needed to more effectively identify and support the education of students experiencing homelessness.
(cf. 0500 – Accountability)
(cf. 6162.51 – State Academic Achievement Tests)
(cf. 6190 – Evaluation of the Instructional Program)
Annually, the Superintendent or designee shall report to CDE, in accordance with Education Code 51225.1(s), the number of students experiencing homelessness graduating from the fourth or fifth year of high school who, for the prior school year, graduated with an exemption from the district-established graduation requirements that are in addition to the statewide coursework requirements.
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
2558.2 Use of revenue limits to determine average daily attendance of homeless children
39807.5 Payment of transportation costs by parents
48850 Educational rights of homeless and foster youth
48852.5 Notice of educational rights of homeless students
48852.7 Enrollment of homeless students
48915.5 Recommended expulsion, homeless student with disabilities
48918.1 Notice of recommended expulsion
51225.1-51225.3 Graduation requirements
52060-52077 Local control and accountability plan
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 5
4600-4687 Uniform complaint procedures
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 20
1087vv Free Application for Federal Student Aid; definitions
1232g Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
6311 Title I state plan; state and local educational agency report cards
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 42
11431-11435 McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
12705 Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act; state and local strategies
Management Resources:
CALIFORNIA CHILD WELFARE COUNCIL
Partial Credit Model Policy and Practice Recommendations
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Homeless Education Dispute Resolution Process, January 30, 2007
NATIONAL CENTER FOR HOMELESS EDUCATION PUBLICATIONS
Homeless Liaison Toolkit, 2013
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GUIDANCE
Dear Colleague Letter, July 27, 2016
Education for Homeless Children and Youths Program, Non-Regulatory Guidance, July 2016
WEB SITES
California Child Welfare Council: http://www.chhs.ca.gov/Pages/CAChildWelfareCouncil.aspx
California Department of Education, Homeless Children and Youth Education: http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/hs/cy
National Center for Homeless Education at SERVE: http://www.serve.org/nche
National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty: http://www.nlchp.org
U.S. Department of Education: http://www.ed.gov/programs/homeless/index.html
Please note that compare references, or “cf”, refer to CSBA model policies and do not necessarily indicate that the San Francisco Unified School District has adopted the referenced policy.