EDUCATOR SPOTLIGHT | Student Homelessness

Homelessness and Its Impact on Schools

By Stephanie Clagnaz, Ed.D.

Children living either with their families or on their own are the fastest-growing portion of the nation’s homeless population, according to new federal housing data. The United States saw an 18.1% increase in homelessness in 2024. These statistics indicate that 23 of every 10,000 people in the U.S. experienced homelessness, with Black people being overrepresented among the homeless population. In New York City, about one in every eight children enrolled in the public schools experienced homelessness during the 2023–24 school year. 2024 was the ninth consecutive year in which more than 100,000 students were identified as homeless in New York City. Of all groups experiencing homelessness, families with children had the largest single increase, with almost a 40% rise in family homelessness in 2024. These astounding statistics are partially a result of the arrival of asylum-seeking and other migrants to New York City.

Of New York City’s students, 54% were “doubled-up,” or temporarily sharing the housing of others and 41% (more than 60,000 students) spent time in New York City shelters. Each of the city’s 32 community school districts saw a rise in the number of students in temporary housing last year. In both the Bronx and Manhattan, nearly one in six students did not have a permanent home in 2024. Areas surrounding New York City are also experiencing an increase in student homelessness with the numbers of homeless people and those seeking emergency shelter in Nassau and Suffolk counties edging back to pre-pandemic levels, according to data provided by the Long Island Coalition for the Homeless.

Students experiencing homelessness often experience serious obstacles. The emotional impact and trauma that homelessness often take on children affects their classroom behavior and their academic performance, including:

• Half of all students in temporary housing and 67% of students in shelters were chronically absent in 2024, meaning they missed at least one out of every ten school days.

• The English Language Arts (ELA) proficiency rate for students in temporary housing in grades 3–8 was more than 20 percentage points lower than that for students in permanent housing.

• Students living in shelters dropped out of high school at triple the rate of their permanently housed peers.

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If your school or district is experiencing challenges in meeting the needs of homeless students or if you have teachers and other staff members in need of support to acquire additional skills in meeting the needs of homeless students, contact the experts at Ledbetter today. We are prepared to offer you any and all of the following assistance:

• Services from our ARP Homeless Children and Youth II Consortium

• Workshops for teachers and other staff that create and build an understanding about the trauma involved in homelessness, its impact on students in schools, and strategies to help students, such as:

  • Overview and understanding of of the McKinney-Vento Act to better serve students who experience homelessness

  • Strengthening social-emotional learning (SEL) and trauma-informed lesson structure, including:

  • Creating a welcoming, trust-building educational spaces that are culturally and linguistically responsive

  • Building community and connecting to the content

  • Enhancing student engagement, using various opportunities to grasp content and employing multiple learning modalities

  • Lesson review that highlights both content and student accomplishment

• Using restorative justice practices

• Creating a safe and secure environment and other aspects of the Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education Framework

To learn more about how we can support you, please email excelerator@led-better.org, or schedule a call with us.

Additional Resources:

• US homelessness up 18% as affordable housing remains out of reach for many people

• Rate of homelessness, emergency shelter use trending up on Long Island - Newsday

• Annual Report | LICH

• More migrant families with children sleeping in tents on Skid Row test official response

• Homeless Population Grows, Putting U.S. on Track for Another Record - WSJ

• Paid Program: Finding Hope for America’s Unhoused

• Student Homelessness in New York City, 2023–24

• 1 in 8 NYC students experienced homelessness last year, a record high
  

• Today's Read: Number of homeless students in NYC schools hits record high, new data shows (from Gothamist)
  

• Record number of New York City public school students were homeless last year

• 1 in 8 NYC public school kids was homeless last school year - City & State New York

• 5 Ways Schools Can Find Homeless Students That They Might Overlook

• New Data Show Dramatic Increases in Family and Youth Homelessness for the Second Consecutive Year

• The 2024 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR to Congress) Part 1

• The Impact of Homelessness on Education - Volunteers of America-Greater New York

• Publications | Homelessness in NYC Elementary Schools | NYU Steinhardt

• Supporting Young Children Experiencing Homelessness: Spotlight on State Coordination for Early Childhood Education

• 1 in 8 NYC Public School Students Experienced Homelessness Last Year. See How Many Were in Your District.

• SEL Signature Practices