Education for Students Experiencing Homelessness

EDUCATION FOR STUDENTS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS

PUC Schools is committed to ensuring educational access, rights, and protections for students experiencing homelessness. “Homelessness” is when a student lacks 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; or are abandoned in hospitals.
• 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.
• Migratory children who qualify as homeless because the children are living in any of the circumstances listed above.

The following individual serves as the Homeless Youth Liaison for PUC Schools:
Zenzontl Kuauhtzin
Director of Student & Parent Engagement & Advocacy, PUC Schools
1405 N. San Fernando Blvd., Suite 303
(818) 559-7699

The Homeless Youth Liaison is responsible for ensuring that students experiencing homelessness are identified, are enrolled in school despite any perceived barriers, have a full and equal opportunity to succeed in PUC Schools, receive the educational services for which they are eligible (e.g., transportation to the school of origin), are informed of the educational opportunities available to them, and are referred to healthcare and other vital services available to them in the community (see below), among other tasks. For more information regarding the educational rights and resources available to students experiencing homelessness, please contact the Homeless Youth Liaison.

One of the ways that PUC Schools identifies students experiencing homelessness is by using the questionnaire published by the California Department of Education, a copy of which is available below. If your family is experiencing homelessness, please fill out the questionnaire and provide it to your school. Paper copies are available at each school site.

DOWNLOADS

RESOURCES

The following resources available to students experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles County:

CDE (California Department of Education) Resources for Homeless Children & Youth: https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/hs/cy/index.asp
LACOE (Los Angeles County Office of Education) Home Children and Youth Resources: https://www.lacoe.edu/Student-Services/Homeless-Children-Youth
211 DIAL 211 toll free | TEXT your zip code to 898211| EMAIL [email protected]
o Parent or Caregiver has to be present at call and will be assigned a social worker
PATH: People Assisting the Homeless:
o http://www.epath.org/site/PATHServices/home.html
o 340 North Madison Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90004
o 323) 644-2200
o Services Provided:
- “PATH Mall” is a location where individuals and families can receive medical and mental health services, a job center, a personal care center, benefits assistance, and veteran services
- “PATHWays Housing” an interim housing community with different locations serving different populations. Housing can be provided to single mothers, single men and women, single men living with HIV/AIDS, veteran men, and a location provides kennels to pets of program residents. This temporary housing is available for those in need and are working with PATH staff to find permanent housing.
- “Rapid Re-housing” is a supportive service that works to provide families experiencing homeless to be quickly rehoused by using hotel vouchers. The goal behind this program is to move families into safe spaces as quickly as possible while keeping the family together. During this time staff works to find long-term permanent housing for the family along with linking them to other support services.
San Fernando Valley Community Mental Health Center: Streets to Home program
- o http://www.movinglivesforward.org/programs/street-home
  o (818) 901-4836
  o Van Nuys, CA
  o The “Streets to Home” program serves chronically homeless individuals with mental illness, substance abuse, and medical conditions off the street into permanent housing within a 90-day period. Clients are also applied for benefits. Once clients are helped with permanent housing, staff from the “Streets to Home” program keep in touch for 6-9 months, and after that time they are transitioned into other programs provided by the SFVCMHC. Target population of this program are adults 18+ years old.
Union Station Homeless Services
o http://unionstationhs.org/impact/access/
o (626) 240-4550
o San Gabriel Valley, CA
o The services provided include helping families at-risk of becoming homeless find housing and other resources. There is an established “Adult Center” that houses men and women in separate dorms while providing transitional housing, life skills training, case management and hot meals to the residents. Offers affordable housing units to families in need with a permanent housing facility for adults. “Sources” provide career development, job searches, and career planning for clients. “Holly Street Housing” provides clients with resources toward safe, permanent housing. The Union Station Homeless Services group can also help enroll clients with benefits as well as health referrals.
Fred Jordon Mission
o (626) 915-1981
o 445 Towne Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90013
o Services provided:
-    Clothing and other personal care items
-    Diapers and baby formula, when donations are available
-    Hot meals/Soup Kitchens **must attend religious service
-    Emergency food bags (2-3day supplies) **does not require religious service attendance
o Services people of the LA County regardless of immigration status
Catholic Charities of Los Angeles – St. Robert’s Center
o catholiccharitiesla.org
o (310) 392-8701
o 211 3rd, Venice, CA 90291
o Services:
-    Emergency food assistance:
-    Clients receive canned goods and packaged groceries on a regular basis
-    Sack lunch program
-    Available on the weekends to homeless individuals
-    Packages can include personal care items along with the meal
-    Services are available for people in the Los Angeles area regardless of immigration status
Society of St. Vincent De Paul – Social Services Department
o www.svdpla.org/pages/content-migration/2.-our-services/our-services---cardinal-manning-center
o (213) 299-9971
o 213 Winston St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
o Services:
-    Community shelter for homeless men
-    Food rescue program
o Donated leftover food from restaurants grocery stores, catered events, etc. are delivered to facilities such as crisis shelters and soup kitchens
-    Separate homeless drop-in centers for men and women
o Substance abuse support, grief and loss support, personal skills development, workshops, telephone facilities, sack lunches
o Seniors are able to participate in bingo, lunch and a movie on Fridays
o Transitional Housing for single men
Grace Resource Inc
o https://www.graceresources.org/
o (661) 940-5272
o 45134 N. Sierra Hwy. Lancaster CA, 93534
o Services:
-    Diaper and formula/baby food assistance
-    Life skills education classes
-    Occasional and ongoing emergency food assistance
-    Soup kitchens
o Most programs require some form of identification for adults and medi-cal or social security numbers for children. Source of income is needed, but proof of income is not. Recent mail with address is needed to verify applicant lives in the Antelope Valley
o Walk-in meal services do not require an ID
John’s Episcopal Cathedral
o stjohnsla.org
o (213) 747-6285
o 514 W. Adams Blvd. Los Angeles CA, 90007
o Services:
- Ongoing Emergency Food Assistance
o Applicants must self-certify they meet government income limits along with identification
o Saturdays are intake days

Eliza Shanks Home Inc
o 13055 Weidner St. Pacoima CA, 91331
o (818) 335-1233
o Services:
Clothing *dependent on donations
-    Food line
-    Provides several-day supply of groceries including canned and dried foods
-    Ongoing emergency food
o All services require some form of identification. An appointment is required for application

Children of the Night Inc
o https://www.childrenofthenight.org/
o childrenofthenight.org
o 14530 Sylvan St. Van Nuys CA, 91411
o (800) 551-1300 (24 hour)
o Services:
-    Rescue food program
-    Runaway/youth shelter
-    Includes sex trade work assistance
-    Runaway/homeless youth hotline
-    Includes sex trade work assistance
-    Human trafficking hotline