Driving the
Bandwagon:
How to increase resources
and mobilize community
support
Beth McCullough M.A., L.L.P.
McKinney-Vento Grant Coordinator, Lenawee County
Liaison

Liaison (noun) li-ai-son

Coordination: the exchange of information
or the planning of joint efforts by two or more
people or groups, often of military personnel
This isn’t a desk job.
This is about being in the field and in the trenches.
This is about fighting for students.
Becoming a Bandleader…
1.
Gather data (learn the song)
2.
Tell the story (teach others the song)
3.
Needs assessments (bring on the band)
Gather Data

Quantitative and Qualitative
Quantitative Data

Abuse and Runaways:
“A longitudinal study conducted in 2011
by Tucker et al examined a number of
variables to identify the significant
predictors of runaway behavior. The
research found that substance use,
depression, and lack of parental support
were all significant predictors of runaway
behavior in youth (Tucker et al., 2011).”
Homeless Students in Michigan
35,000
31,133
30,000
25,000
22,673
20,000
14,875
15,000
10,000
7,500
5,000
0
# Enrolled
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
In the 2012-2013 school year
Lenawee County public schools
identified and served 704 homeless
students.
Lenawee County Statistics
700
600
2001-2002
1
2002-2003
61
500
2003-2004 160
400
2004-2005 314
300
2005-2006 340
200
2006-2007 356
100
2007-2008 376
0
2001- 2003- 2005- 2007- 2009- 20112002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012
2008-2009 414
2009-2010 508
2010-2011 603
2011-2012 671
Qualitative Data
“I don’t want to ask for help. I want to do it
myself. But I ain’t got no family. How are you
supposed to do it without a family. I don’t
know how to do things. How do you go to the
dentist? Do you just go? Where do you go?
Do you call first? Do they want money? I
have a Medicaid card, but no money. How
are you supposed to know how to go to the
dentist when you got no family?”
--a Lenawee County high school student
Quantitative Data

“Physical or sexual abuse drives youth onto
the street – and in some cases, keeps them
there for fear that returning home may mean
a return to abuse. The Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention found 21
percent of runaway / thrownaway kids had
physical or sexual abuse in their history,
or were afraid of suffering abuse if they
went home (Hammer et al., 2002).”
Qualitative Data
I don’t want to ask for help. I’ll be ok. I will be fine.
Do you know where I can stay tonight…if…you know…I can’t
stay anyplace else?”
--a 17 year old at Adrian High School
The average age of a homeless
person in America is:
9
Tell the story:
Teach others the song

To school personnel
Principals, superintendents, teachers, food
service workers, transportation, administrative
assistants, paraprofessionals, band directors,
counselors, PTOs, athletic directors, coaches,
 What are we telling them?
 What are we asking for?
 Do we tell them when it works? when it
doesn’t?


To the media
Hometown Hope Award
 Social media
 Back to school
 Graduation
 Monthly article
 Look for reasons to alert the media

What is our message?
 What are we asking for?


To funders
Service clubs, monthly and annually
 Churches
 Philanthropists
 Grants
 Sororities, Fraternities
 Retired professionals’ groups


Give them solutions to fund.
Bring on the Band




Who are your partners?
 Continuum of Care
 DHS
 Homeless Youth Committee
 Runaway and Homeless Youth
 Business Community
Why should they partner with you?
 Not all grants come from HUD
What do you bring to the table?
What do you want from your partners?
Ask not what your Continuum of Care can do for you….
but what you can do for them.
Tools for schools (UB&T)

Presented at a service club and
someone went back to work and
talked about homeless education…
8 years later over 100,000 school supplies have been donated
and I am never, never without backpacks.
• Donated bikes
• Run by
volunteers
• Requires a
bicycle safety
course
• 10 hours of
work fixing bikes
or $20 donation
or both
Tilton and Sons Shoes
134 E. Chicago Blvd.
Tecumseh, MI 49268
Monday – Friday 9:00 to 5:30
Saturday 9:00 to 5:00
Shoe Voucher
Please bring this voucher to Tilton and Sons Shoes and
they will assist you in fin student.
___________________________________
School District
___________________________________
Homeless Education Liaison
(Original signature is required.)
Feed the Body.
Feed the Mind.
Please feel free to take a book for your child.
Ideas…
from service clubs
o
Tools for Schools (bank president)
Laundry vouchers (Laundromat
owner)
o
Pajama Rama (Community organizer
from Midwest Energy)
o
Library Gingerbread contest (library
director)
o
Ideas…
from Continuum of Care
Homeless youth committee
 Roadmap to Graduation
 Calendars
 Food pantry extended hours
 Feed the body. Feed the mind.
 Goodwill Youth initiative
 Re-bicycle Lenawee
 Norma Dell Courage to Care award

Ideas…
from churches
Shoe vouchers
 Sock it to me Sunday
 Undy Sundy
 Drop your underwear here
 Blanket project

Ideas…
from schools, professional
development
Partners in Hope Scholarship
 Lenawee County Homeless Education
Conference
 Hope Award
 Chuck a duck for a buck (varsity club)
 Paper drives (no newspaper needed)

Ideas…
necessity is the mother of
invention

Tacos for taxis

Promise Project

Support the girls
Did you know
you are working in:











Drop out prevention
Suicide prevention
GLBT awareness
College readiness
Reading readiness
Special education
Parent involvement
Migrant education
Adult literacy
Teen pregnancy prevention
Substance abuse









Women’s rights
Domestic violence
Child abuse and
neglect
Safe children
Human trafficking
Social justice
Ending poverty
Ending hunger
…and education and
homelessness
Sources:


Tucker, J., Edelen, M., Ellickson, P., & Klein, D. (2011). Running Away From
Home: A Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Risk Factors and Young Adult
Outcomes. Journal of Adolescence, 40(5), 507–518.
Hammer, H., Finkelhor, D., & Sedlak, A. (2002). Runaway / Thrownaway
Children: National Estimates and Characteristics. Office of Juvenile Justice
and Delinquency Prevention.
“Someday I will tell my grandchildren,
‘Your great-grandmother was a part of the movement to allow
all children to go to school. I know it is hard to believe, but
schools once kept children out or made them change
schools all the time, just because the children were
homeless. It wasn’t like it is today. We actually had kids
who were hungry and couldn’t go to a doctor because they
didn’t have money. Your great-grandmother helped fix
that.’
Today we can’t imagine women not having the vote and
someday we won’t be able to imagine children not being
allowed to go to school.”
-Christian McCullough