McKinney-Vento Program

"What homeless children need most of all is a home. While they are experiencing homelessness, however, children desperately need to 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

McKinney-Vento Overview

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Program holds learning for all students as its highest priority through removing barriers to learning for homeless children and youth. Strong district and community collaborations and partnerships are key elements of the program.

The Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) Program's major responsibility is to implement the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act. Youth experiencing homelessness and unaccompanied youth must have access to public school educational programs and services that allow them to meet the same challenging state academic standards to which all students are held.

The District has resources to help families and students who find themselves in a situation where they may be homeless. Call our McKinney-Vento Office at (920) 448-7326 for resource and referral information.

Links to Resource Information

Contact Information


Program Requirements

  • Identify and immediately enroll any homeless child or youth (preschool to grade 12), even without academic or medical records.
  • Homeless students who move have the right to remain in their schools of origin (i.e., the school the student attended when permanently housed or in which the student was last enrolled, which includes preschools) if that is in the student’s best interest.
  • Inform parents/guardians of the educational rights of their children.
  • Provide transportation, at the request of the parent, to the school of origin for the duration of homelessness. If a youth becomes stably housed during the school year, transportation supports can continue until the end of the academic school year.
  • Homeless students must have access to all programs and services for which they are eligible, including special education services, preschool, school nutrition programs, language assistance for English learners, career and technical education, gifted and talented programs, magnet schools, charter schools, summer learning, online learning.
  • Unaccompanied youths must be accorded specific protections, including immediate enrollment in school without proof of guardianship.
  • Parents, guardians, and unaccompanied youths have the right to dispute an eligibility, school selection, or enrollment decision.
  • Ensure homeless students are not segregated or stigmatized. 


Definition of Homeless Children and Youth

The term 'homeless children and youth' means school-aged individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence due to economic hardship. It includes children and youth who:

  • Are temporarily sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason.
  • Are living in motels, hotels, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations.
  • Are living in emergency and transitional shelters.
  • Are abandoned in hospitals.
  • Have a nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designated for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.
  • Are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings.
  • Are runaway children or children who are abandoned.
  • Migratory children.
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