Homeless Student
Stability Act
(SB 5065)
Casey Trupin
Coordinating Attorney
Children & Youth Project
A Problem in Towns Big and Small
428 Bellingham
508 Wenatchee
80 Colville
107 Port Angeles
1,220 Spokane
30,609
1,872 Seattle
221 Clarkston
440 Olympia
332 Kennewick
557 Vancouver
486 Yakima
Homeless Students Struggle to Learn
30,609
students in Washington
State are homeless, up
82% since 2006-07.
These kids are highly
mobile, moving often to
wherever they can find
shelter and frequently
changing schools.
Instability at home
hurts homeless
students’ ability to
learn, as each time a
student moves to a new
school, he or she loses
between 4-6 months of
academic progress.
The Learning Gap: Proficiency by Subject
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Math
Reading
Homeless Students
Science
All Students
Only 38% of homeless students are
proficient in math, versus 64% among
their housed peers. This learning gap
extends across all subjects.
45.1%
of homeless students
graduated in the class of
2013, compared to 78%
among their housed
peers. In other words,
2,283 homeless seniors
did not get to walk
across the graduation
stage. Schools spend
$17 million each year
transporting highly mobile
kids to school; each
student that drops out
represents a net lifetime
cost of $200,000 to
taxpayers.
The Importance of Stability
Homeless Seniors, Class of 2013
45%
55%
Graduated On Time (1,838)
Did Not Graduate On Time (2,238)
Percent of Students Involved in Justice System
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
3+ Moves
2 Moves
1 Move
0 Moves
SCHOOLS LACK CAPACITY
Liaisons Can Only Devote 2 Hours Per Week
Other Job Duties (38 hours)
Liaison Duties (2 hours)
Lack of State & Federal Money
Percent of WA School Districts Receiving Federal
McKinney Vento Grant
8%
Receiving Grant
Funding (24)
92%
Not Receiving Grant
Funding (271)
Everett
Tukwila
Students receiving out of district
transportation:
Students receiving out of district
transportation:
Students receiving
transportation:
2012-13: 492
2012-13: 132 students
2012-13: estimate of
2200-3600/30,609 students
Total costs of transportation:
Total costs of transportation:
2012-13: $809,897
2012-13: $205,275
Average Cost per Homeless
Student
~$1646 per student
Statewide
$16.6 M
Average Cost per Homeless
Student
$15 M
$16.8 M
~$1555 per student
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
A district has identified three students as homeless. Each student
will have to move at least 30 miles outside of the district to live in
the nearest shelter. Over the course of the school year, it will cost
the district $45,000 ($15,000 each) to transport these students to
and from the school of origin to their local residence.
Without housing the district will
pay to transport these students.
1
+
+ +
2
3
= $45,000
But if a school-housing partnership could offer
families in-need housing supports
1
2
3
=
$2,000 Cost of housing support
+$13,000 Savings to District
$6,000
=+$9,000
=
Cost of housing support
Savings to District
$500 Cost of housing support
+$14,500 Savings to District
Homeless Student
Stability Act
(SB 5065)
Bi-Partisan Support
1. The HSSA provides
dedicated staff support
for homeless student
education liaisons
2. The HSSA creates a grant
program serving up to 15
districts by providing each
with $500,000 per year to
directly increase housing
stability for homeless
students and families.
schoolhousewa.org