Homeless in high school:
a rising tide of displaced students 18 and over

The number of high school students who become homeless after turning 18 has increased dramatically in recent years, far outpacing the few housing assistance programs available to them, say advocates for the homeless. Some youths leave home voluntarily to escape abusive situations, and others are forced out by parents or relatives. Youth advocates say economic hardship, family disputes, and, in some cases, the belief that children should support themselves at 18 lead some parents or guardians to push their children out.

Foster care and other state or federally funded programs do not include adult-age teens as part of their mandate, unless they receive assistance before they turn 18. Students tend to shun homeless shelters, which typically serve mostly adults, often those with mental-health or substance-abuse issues.

One program that does help this group is Youth Harbors, a program based at Malden High School that caters to homeless students over 18. The Quincy and Brockton school districts have similar programs in conjunction with a local homeless advocacy agency. “They’re still children,’’ said Maria Vertkin, a caseworker at Youth Harbors. “All of a sudden, everything is pulled from under their feet, and they’re told to fend for themselves.’’

The agency, which opened last October with a caseload of six students, currently helps about 25 students who are homeless or at risk of being homeless. The program, funded with a $100,000 stimulus grant, provides homeless students with counseling and helps them find jobs and housing, paying their rent for several months. “When a student has to wonder where they are going to sleep the next night, or where their next meal is coming from, then obviously they aren’t thinking about homework,’’ said Vertkin .

Mark Stewart, who provides counseling for students in the program, said he began to notice about three years ago an increase in the number of referrals of homeless 18-year-old students. “It was a catch-22 situation, where these students, according to the law, were adults and not eligible for many types of assistance they would have if they were 17,’’ he said.

John Yazwinski, chief executive of Father Bill’s & Mainspring, which operates homeless agencies in Quincy and Brockton, said his organization works closely with the school districts in those communities to find housing for adult-age homeless students, a population that has increased drastically, he said. “In 2009 we assisted 135, about a 40 percent increase from the previous year. In the last six months, we’ve assisted 108 students. In the Quincy schools, there are close to 30 to 40 homeless students.’’

In 2005, the Massachusetts Department of Education asked students in a confidential Youth Risk Behavior Study survey to define their housing situation. It was the first time students had been asked the question. Based on the results, the study estimated that 4.2 percent of all high school students in the state, about 12,000, were homeless or unaccompanied youth.

Nationally, according to a survey funded by the US Department of Education, there were 794,617 homeless children enrolled in K-12 in 2007-2008, compared with 679,724 the previous school year, with 39 states recording an increase.

Researchers in Massachusetts found strong links between homelessness and test performance. Based on 2004-2005 MCAS results, students defined as homeless performed well below the general student population. Of 10th-graders who took the tests that year, 62 percent of homeless students passed the English language arts portion, compared with 90 percent of the general population, and 45 percent of homeless students passed the math portion, compared with 85 percent of the general population. According to the study, only a third of homeless students took the test, compared with 99 percent of the general student population, a finding that points to higher absenteeism among homeless students.

Bridge Over Troubled Waters in Boston caters to young adults, but has no emergency shelter. The group has 21 residential beds that are considered transitional housing. Those beds are filled and there is a waiting list.

Mark Evans, the director of client services, said, “This is really becoming an urgent issue. This past week I got five calls from local high schools for kids who have become homeless.’’ 

-From: “Homeless in high school; Help is hard to find for a rising tide of displaced students 18 and over”, by Brian R. Ballou, The Boston Globe, February 16, 2010, http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2010/02/16/homeless_in_high_school/ retrieved 2/16/10.

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