蜜桃影视

This is the latest article in 蜜桃影视鈥檚 ongoing 鈥�Big Picture鈥� series, bringing American education into sharper focus through new research and data. Go Deeper: Get our newest numbers and our latest coverage of America’s 74 million children delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for聽蜜桃影视 Newsletter

Student homelessness has hit an all-time high following a significant spike over the past three years, with 20 states experiencing a surge of 10 percent or more, new federal data released last week indicate. The data also found that students who experience homelessness are significantly less likely to graduate from high school.

More than during the 2016-17 school year, a 7 percent increase over three years ago and the largest number ever recorded. Over the past decade, the population of students experiencing homelessness has spiked by a startling 70 percent.

Several factors might have contributed to the growth in student homelessness. Among them are lingering effects of the recession, local economic issues, natural disasters, and the opioid epidemic, said Barbara Duffield, executive director of the nonprofit SchoolHouse Connection, which works to address homelessness through education.

鈥淗omelessness is complex is the bottom line. Lots of different things go into it, and so there are both economic issues and issues around addiction and mental health challenges and domestic violence,鈥� she said.

But the larger numbers, she cautioned, could be due in part to better identification. An increase from better tracking could be positive, Duffield said, 鈥渂ecause we have to know who they are in order to help.鈥�

鈥淭hese children don鈥檛 announce themselves,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 come up and say 鈥楬i, I鈥檓 homeless, help me.鈥欌��

Under the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, children are considered homeless if they lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. That includes children who reside in shelters, cars, or campgrounds because they lack alternatives. It also includes families who double up with others due to economic hardship or loss of housing. Doubling up accounted for 76 percent of student homelessness in 2016-17.

Meanwhile, 14 percent of homeless youth resided in shelters, 6 percent lived in hotels or motels, and 4 percent were identified as unsheltered. The unsheltered category saw the most growth, increasing by 27 percent over the three-year period.

Homelessness has significant academic ramifications. Utilizing data from 44 states, the report shows that students who experienced homelessness during the 2016-17 school year had a graduation rate of 64 percent 鈥� compared with a 77.6 percent graduation rate among other low-income students, and a national average of 84.1 percent.

Among students who experienced homelessness in 2016-17, about 30 percent were proficient in reading and 25 percent were proficient in mathematics.

When the Education Department releases data on the 2017-18 school year, it will include graduation data from all states, as required by the federal Every Student Succeeds Act. That new data, Duffield said, will provide 鈥渁 better understanding that students who experience homelessness have challenges over and above simply being poor.鈥�

鈥淭here鈥檚 this misperception that homelessness is just a poor child without a house temporarily,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut there鈥檚 a lot more that goes with it.鈥�

If they鈥檙e interested in improving graduation rates for all students, schools need to hone in on the performance of homeless students, Duffield said.

Coinciding with the new federal data, a separate report offering a snapshot of聽 was released by the Education Leads Home campaign, a partnership between SchoolHouse Connection, Civic, America鈥檚 Promise Alliance, and the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness. The report includes state-level data on student homelessness, showing that New York has the highest rate of student homelessness nationally.

The campaign, which aims to improve the graduation rates of homeless students, notes that children without stable living conditions are 87 percent more likely to drop out of school and, without a diploma, more than four times as likely to become homeless as young adults.

Duffield said she鈥檚 worried that the growth in student homelessness 鈥渞eflects communities not understanding the needs of families and youth, and not really stepping up when it comes to providing shelter and services.鈥�

Go Deeper:聽This is the latest article in 蜜桃影视鈥檚 ongoing聽鈥楤ig Picture鈥� series, bringing American education into sharper focus through coverage of the latest data and research. Get new additions delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for聽蜜桃影视 Newsletter; here are a聽few notable聽recent聽dispatches:

• Student Engagement:聽Bored in class 鈥� A national survey finds聽nearly 1 in 3 teens are bored 鈥榤ost or all of the time鈥� in school, and a majority report high levels of stress

• School Choice:聽New Florida study shows students using state鈥檚 tax credit scholarship program聽more likely to attend and graduate college

• 础肠补诲别尘颈肠蝉:听Is homework too easy? With half of parents expressing concerns,聽new study says students鈥� assignments lack rigor, favor lower-level skills

• Trauma:聽Despite prevalent trauma, from school shootings to the opioid epidemic,聽few states have policies to fully address student needs, study finds

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