HOMELESS CHILDREN
The Benton Harbor Area Schools
Board of Education is committed to identifying homeless children and
youth. Under the McKinney-Vento Act, the terms homeless children and
youths mean "individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate
nighttime residence…and includes:
- children and youths who are sharing the housing
of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a
similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or
camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate
accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters;
are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement;
- children and youths who have a primary nighttime
residence that is a public or private place not designed for or
ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human
beings…;
- children and youths who are living in cars,
parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus
or train stations, or similar settings; and
- migratory children…who qualify as homeless for
the purposes of this part because the children are living in
circumstances described [above]."
Homeless children shall be provided educational
services to meet their needs as determined and directed by the
Superintendent. Regulations/guidelines will be developed that
implement the requirement of the No Child Left Behind Act. The
guidelines will be written for distribution to each school. This
information shall also be disseminated in writing and by other means
designed to raise awareness of these rights and responsibilities to
staff, homeless families, students, the public and homeless service
providers.
The Board authorizes the Superintendent to waive
fees and charges that may act as barriers and prevent homeless
children from enrolling in school and/or acquiring an appropriate
education.
To be eligible for federal funds for programs
assisting in the education of homeless children, the district must
provide written notice to the parents/guardians of each child enrolled
in school.
Homeless children must be provided transportation
services, educational services and meals through school meal programs
comparable to those offered to other children in the school attended.
The notice must also include contact information for the local liaison
for homeless children and the state coordinator for education of
homeless children. If the district sends a homeless child to a school
other than the school of origin or the school requested by the
parent/guardian, the district must provide the parents/guardians a
written explanation for, including notice of the right to appeal, the
decision. This information must also be provided whenever a dispute
arises over school selection.
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