The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (“Act”), 42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq., is a federal law that is designed to ensure that homeless children and youth have the same access as other children to public education, including public preschool programs.

Who is protected under McKinney-Vento?
Massachusetts has adopted Section 725(2) of the Act which defines homeless children and youth as individuals who lack a “fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. This includes children who:

• Share the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar conditions;
• Live in motels, hotels, trailers or camping grounds due to lack of alternative housing;
• Live in shelters;
• Have been abandoned in hospitals;
• Have been placed out of their home into temporary, transitional or emergency living placement, including STARR programs, and are waiting for a foster care placement;
• Have a primary nighttime residence that is not meant for regular sleeping accommodations;
• Live in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations or similar settings; and
• Have been “thrown out” or have run away and as a result are not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian and are living in a shelter, on the street, with friends or relatives, or are moving around from one place to another.

Also included are migratory children who qualify as homeless because they live in any of the circumstances described above. Mass. Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education Homeless Education Advisory 2002-1, 2004-9, 2007-9A

What rights do students have under McKinney-Vento?

• The right to immediate enrollment or remain in school of origin
• The right to choose what school to attend
• The right to participate in the same programs and activities as other students
• The right to transportation
  • The parent or guardian (or, in the case of an unaccompanied youth, the school homeless liaison) of a homeless student may request that transportation be provided to and from school. If the student is still in the same district as the school of origin, the school district must provide transportation. If the student is not living within the district of the school of origin, the district of origin and the district where the student is living must determine how to share transportation costs and responsibility. If the districts cannot come to an agreement, then the responsibility and costs must be shared equally. In general, transportation time should be limited to one hour or less in each direction.
  • Please note, the transportation provisions of McKinney-Vento only apply to students who are currently homeless. If a student obtains permanent housing and continues to attend his/her school of origin until the end of the school year, the continued provision of transportation is at the discretion of the district of origin.

Under the Act, every school district is required to have a Homeless Education Liaison. It is the job of the Liaison to ensure that homeless students have the same opportunities as all other students, which includes ensuring that homeless students are able to attend school, arranging for transportation in a timely manner, keeping the school staff informed of the rights of homeless students and providing appropriate referrals to service providers.