McKinney-Vento Homeless Education

Any child or youth who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence including: 

• Those who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship,
• 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;* 
• Those who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings 
• Those who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and 
• Those identified by the Migrant Education Program (as defined in section 1309 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965) who qualify as homeless because the children are living in circumstances described in the bullet points above

• Every school district has a designated McKinney-Vento (MKV) Homeless Education Liaison responsible for identifying MKV students and providing resources to help these students.
• Refer to our list of liaisons (Smartsheet) to find the liaison in your district. If you are unable to access any portion of this document, please contact us at 720-305-7536 or spear_s@cde.state.co.us.

McKinney-Vento Liaison’s Roles and Responsibilities 

• The local liaison is the key to ensuring homeless children and youths receive the services they need.
• Required in all local education agencies regardless of subgrant status.
• The liaison is the primary contact between homeless families, school and local education agency/district staff, shelter workers, and other service providers. 
• In 42 U.S.C. § 11432(g)(6)(A), the McKinney-Vento Act lists the responsibilities of the local liaison including ensuring the protection of student and parent rights outlined under the law. 

View the Homeless Liaison Toolkit for more info

Educational Rights of McKinney-Vento Students

FAQs on the Educational Rights of Homeless Children & Youth 

Highly Mobile Youth FAQs

• Access to a McKinney-Vento Homeless Educational Liaison in their school district
• Identification through outreach and coordination activities
• Immediate enrollment with full and equal opportunity to succeed in school
• Choice between the neighborhood school or the school of origin (school last enrolled in or attended)
• Transportation to the school of origin (including preschool)
• Immediate access to free school meals and educational services for which they are eligible
• Automatic eligibility for Title I, Part A of the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015
• Referrals to health care, dental, mental health and substance abuse, housing, and other appropriate services
• Unaccompanied youth are informed of their status as independent students on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
• You can also refer to the US Department of Education's Education for Homeless Children and Youth site for more information and use the ED Data Express website to browse education data by state.