The McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act ensures that children and youth experiencing homelessness have full and equal access to an appropriate public education. The federal education definition of homelessness based on the McKinney-Vento Act defines homeless children and youth as individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This definition also includes:

• Children and youth who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason

• Children and youth who may be living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, camping grounds, or shelters

• Children and youth who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as regular sleeping accommodation for human beings

• Children and youth 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 because they are children who are living in similar circumstances listed above

Your child or children may have the right to:

• Immediate enrollment in the school they last attended (school of origin) or the local school where you are currently staying, even if you do not have all the documents normally required at the time of enrollment.
• Continue to attend their school of origin, if requested by you, and is in the best interest.
• Receive transportation to and from their school of origin the same special programs and services, if needed, as provided for all other children, including free meals and Title I.
• Receive the full protection and services provided under all federal and state laws, as it relates to displaced children, youth, and their families.

If you have any questions about these rights, please contact:

Assistant Principal of Student Services, Leticia Gonzlaez, by phone at  714-626-3818 or by email lgonzalez@fjuhsd.org

Family Liason, Maria Copete, by phone 714-626-3812 or by email mcopete@fjuhsd.org