Transcript McKinney-Vento Reauthorization

Ensuring Post-Secondary Education
Opportunities for Homeless Youth
Barbara Duffield
National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth
PAHCI Statewide Conference
October 16, 2009
Barriers to College Access
•
•
•
•
•
Lack of parent/guardian - forms, scholarships
Lack of knowledge about access programs
Lack of assistance to complete FAFSA
Lack of ACT/SAT fee waivers
Inability to participate in college fairs
(transportation, awareness)
• Need for employment to survive
• Low expectations from family, others
Barriers to College Retention
• Lack of housing during academic breaks, summer
• Need for employment to survive
• Lack of support on campus (academic, social,
mental health)
• Lack of financial support (scholarships)
• Low expectations from family, others
Federal Financial Aid
• Youth who meet the definition of “independent
student” can apply for federal aid without parental
income information or signature.
• Unaccompanied homeless youth are automatically
considered independent students.
– Must be verified as unaccompanied and homeless during
the school year when application is submitted.
• Youth who are unaccompanied, at risk of
homelessness, and self-supporting are also
automatically considered independent students
– Must be verified as such during the school year in which the
application is submitted.
Federal Financial Aid (cont.)
• Verification must be made by:
– a McKinney-Vento Act school district liaison
– a HUD homeless assistance program director or their designee
– a Runaway and Homeless Youth Act program director or their
designee
– a financial aid administrator.
• Youth in foster care and those who aged out of foster care are
also automatically considered independent students.
• Youth who have been in foster care at any time after age 13
will automatically be considered independent students as of
July 1, 2010.
• Sample verification template at www.naehcy.org
Supporting Documents
• FAFSA Tips for Unaccompanied Youth
• FAFSA Tips for Foster Youth
• Helping Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Access
College Financial Aid
• Income Tax and the FAFSA for Unaccompanied
Homeless Youth
• Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Verification
For the Purposes of Federal Financial Aid
• http://www.naehcy.org/higher_ed.html
6
Application and Verification
Guide
• Located on ED website at
http://ifap.ed.gov/fsahandbook/0910AVG.html
• If a student does not have, and cannot get, verification
from a liaison, RHYA provider, or HUD provider, a
financial aid administrator must make a determination
of homeless/unaccompanied status
• This is not an exercise of professional judgment or a
dependency override, but should be processed as such
for this year; a separate question will be added next
year
Application and Verification
Guide - 2
• Determinations should be made on a case-by-case
basis (see NCHE’s Determining Eligibility
http://www.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/det_elig.
pdf)
• A student living in a dormitory who would
otherwise be homeless should be considered
homeless
• A student fleeing abuse and living in homeless
living situations may be considered homeless even
if the parent would provide a place to live
Application and Verification
Guide - 3
• No prescribed documentation for FAA evaluation of
living arrangements, but it must demonstrate that
student meets the definition
• Determination may be made on the basis of a
documented interview with the student if no written
documentation is available
• FAAs may rely upon a determination from another
school that a student met definition
• Students older than 21 but younger than 24 who would
otherwise meet the definition qualify for a
dependency override
FAFSA Changes
• New Draft FAFSA available for public
comment by November 4
• Comments may be submitted
electronically through e-mail to
[email protected]
• Draft FAFSA is on the web:
http://www.ifap.ed.gov/fafsa/1011FA
FSADraft.html
FAFSA Changes
• Questions 56-58 on draft FAFSA are for
homeless youth
• Notes define “youth” as 21 or under or
still in high school when signed
• Notes tell youth to answer “no” if they
do not have a determination, but do
not instruct on how to get a
determination from liaison
College Access Programs
• TRIO: six federal programs at high school,
college, or consortia
• GEAR UP: middle school through high school
• Reauthorized as part of the Higher Education
Opportunities Act
TRIO: The Perfect Partner
• Expertise in college access success with
underserved populations
• Community-based partners
• Collaborative relationships with education
service providers
• Trusting relationships with students as they
move through the system
• Have respect within the higher education
community
Participating in TRIO
• The school district liaison is able to
verify that a student is homeless or an
unaccompanied youth.
• Not all homeless students and
unaccompanied youth will identify
themselves as homeless.
Higher Education
Opportunities Act 2008
• TRIO programs must “identify and make
available services..including mentoring,
tutoring, and other services provided…” to:
– Youth in foster care
– Youth who left foster care after age 13
– Homeless children and youth
• All three groups are automatically eligible to
participate in Talent Search, Upward Bound,
Student Support Services, and Educational
Opportunity Centers.
HEOA 2008 and
Homelessness (cont.)
• TS, UB, SSS and EOC funds may be used
to provide programs and activities
specially designed for:
–
–
–
–
–
Homeless children and youth
Foster youth
English language learners
Students with disabilities
Other disconnected students
HEOA and Homelessness
• SSS has a new goal to foster an
institutional climate supportive of the
success of homeless children and
youth.
– SSS funds can be used to secure temporary
housing during breaks in the academic
year for homeless children and youth and
foster youth.
TRIO and GEAR-UP in PA
• PA Association of Educational
Opportunity Program Personnel:
www.paeopp.org
• PA State GEAR UP
www.pagearup.org
Strategies
Ensure that high school counselors are aware of
the definition of unaccompanied homeless youth,
as well as the changes to the FAFSA.
Inform RHYA providers, and all HUD Homeless
Assistance providers, that they are authorized by
law to verify a youth’s status as homeless and
unaccompanied for financial aid purposes.
Strategies, 2
Develop relationships with local financial aid
administrators to inform them about
unaccompanied homeless youth, about your role
as school district liaisons, and about the new
FAFSA provisions.
Remember that these provisions are still relatively
new, and many financial aid administrators have
not had experience with the McKinney-Vento Act’s
definition of homelessness, or school district
liaisons.
Strategies, 3
Use a standard homeless verification form to
facilitate communication between schools, service
providers, and colleges. www.naehcy.org. Modify
as needed, and put on agency letterhead.
Help homeless youth access financial aid by
connecting them to FAFSA Completion Help
Events in Pennsylvania, Jan-April. PA Higher
Education Association - www.pheaa.org
Strategies, 4
Find out if your community is served by a TRIO or
GEAR UP program
Establish a relationship with appropriate staff to let
them know of the needs of the homeless students
in your community and discuss ways to collaborate.
Contact Information
Barbara Duffield
Policy Director
National Association for the Education of Homeless
Children and Youth
Phone: 202.364.7392
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.naehcy.org