Do you know many children are homeless in our area?

The National Center for Homeless Education at the Serve Center, funded by the U.S. Department of Education has recorded that the number of children homeless in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania jumped by 55% from 2007-08 to 2009-10. In 2011 31,386 children were identified as homeless. In the nine western Pennsylvania counties the Allegheny Intermediate Unit serves, the number of children experiencing homelessness increased by 23% – from about 1,800 children to 2,200. Because of the transient nature of homelessness under-reporting inevitably occurs despite due diligence by those responsible for collecting the data.

. . . how these families become homeless?

Homelessness has as many different causes as it has victims. Each family's situation is unique. A family may be displaced by fire, domestic violence, substance abuse, illness, or loss of a job. Now the increasing inability to make mortgage payments and foreclosures on owners of rental property are contributing to homelessness among families who never anticipated the prospect.

Too often homelessness or the threat of homelessness has simply been insufficient income to cover the basic necessities. In 2010, 30.1% of all Pennsylvanians were "just making ends meet," 13.4% "lived in poverty," and 5.9% "lived in deep poverty." That's 6,152,701 of the 12,298,955 residents of the Commonwealth. (Figures provided by a 2010 "American Community Survey" compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau.) See Christine Stone's Opinion/Perspectives essay — Poverty Threatens Our Future — in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9/29/11

To gain a sharper understanding of the causes of homelessness beyond the economics, ponder these questions.

A parent knows it is the children who suffer most in these circumstances. As one public school liaison has said, "The stress on a child in a homeless situation is phenomenal. The stress of not knowing where they are going to be staying, whether or not they will be able to remain together, if their parents will be OK, and if they can stay in their school can really take their toll."

. . . where and how children who are homeless live?

Although there are occasional news stories of whole families living in cars or tents, that is not the norm. The first step for many homeless families may be moving in with relatives or friends: this is called doubling-up and the children are considered homeless by law. The U.S. Department of Education data for the 2008-09 school year showed over 66% of children and youth identified by school districts as homeless were living in doubled-up situations. Doubling-up is generally not a long-term solution.

Alternatives are the shelters and transitional living facilities in Allegheny County staffed by trained and compassionate professionals. Regrettably, all such agencies must cope with a shortage of beds and of ready funding, which is one factor leading to "shelter hopping."

. . . what children lose when they become homeless?

Read these words of author Tiny (aka Lisa Gray-Garcia) from her powerful book Criminal of Poverty: Growing Up Homeless in America: "I never developed deep attachments to any of my belongings; I was just unable to arrange or contain the things I was able to hold on to. Between the serial evictions and constant moves, nary a stuffed animal or childhood picture remained in my possession. Throughout the life of a homeless child, you lose everything; it's like going through a fire or a hurricane every day, and the little things that really matter like baby pictures, school yearbooks, and letters from important people all drift away like water from a shore." [Reprinted with the permission of the publisher of Criminal of Poverty (City Lights Foundation Books). To learn more about the book or to purchase, go to http://www.citylights.com/book/?GCOI=87286100340140&fa=description]

. . . how homelessness affects a child's schooling?

It's been estimated that each move of a homeless family puts the children at risk of falling some six months behind in their studies. Children in kindergarten through 3rd grade are most at risk of never catching up. It is in these grades that they are learning to read. After that, they must be able to read to learn. Clearly, the circumstances of homelessness not only have an immediate effect on children's classroom performance but also have far-reaching consequences for their adult lives.

As the Executive Director of one of the homeless housing agencies with which HCEF
partners has said: "Unfortunately, our children are more likely to have problems in school. They move so often they cannot adjust to new schools and find themselves unable to catch up to their peers, who have a more stable home life. Without help our children will be the next homeless generation."

For a fuller understanding of the educational challenges these children and youth face, see Underperforming Schools and the Education of Vulnerable Children, by Lisa Walker and Cheryl Smithgall, a 2009 Chapin Hall study out of the University of Chicago and "How do you assign homework to a kid without a home?" published in the NEA Today Magazine for January 2010.

. . . what HCEF does to serve these children?

The Homeless Children's Education Fund was established as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charity in 1999.  Its mission is to serve as a voice for the homeless children of Allegheny County and to ensure that they are afforded equal access to the same educational opportunities and experiences as their peers. HCEF pursues this mission by leveraging community and governmental resources to serve the needs of children caught up in homelessness, most dramatically through

• advocacy for the periodic renewal and strengthening of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
• the establishment of Learning Centers and Resource Libraries in the facilities where the children are living
• reading readiness programming for pre-schoolers and trained reading tutors and volunteer tutors who work with children and youth whose reading skills are below grade level
• generous donations by individuals and community organizations to fund sound educational opportunities for these children, and
• the Homeless Education Network advocating for systemic reform at local, state, and national levels

With these and other initiatives, HCEF has had a significant and positive impact on the lives of thousands of Allegheny County children over the years. To learn more you may wish to have a member of our volunteer Speakers Bureau address a group or event with which you are engaged. We invite you to complete this online form to let us know of your interest.

. . . how you can help?

Here are a number of specific ways you can contribute your talents and resources in support of HCEF's work.

. . . how awareness of homelessness in Allegheny County is being raised

The Diocese of Pittsburgh Department of Education – through its essay and poster contest held yearly during the November National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week – encourages its middle school children to learn about homelessness through classroom discussion and research and to write an essay or create a poster expressing their new understanding of homelessness in Allegheny County.

The theme for the November 2011 contest was How might you provide children who are homeless with "a little help, a little hope, and somebody who believes in them." How might you encourage others to do so as well. (The statement is by legendary basketball player, Earvin "Magic" Johnson.) Fifth through eighth grade students participated in the contest, and many of the Diocese's middle schools held fund raisers in support of HCEF. The award-winning writers and artists were celebrated at Shepherd Wellness Community where they had an opportunity to make sandwiches for agency clients, to learn about the mission of Shepherd Wellness and to tour the facility, to present their award-winning submissions before their parents as well as representatives of HCEF and of the Diocese of Pittsburgh Department of Education, and to celebrate with a pizza lunch. Their winning essays and posters can be found here.

"Participate" vicariously in the Poverty Simulation HCEF co-sponsored with Pittsburgh Social Venture Partners (PSVP) in November 2007.

See Summit to Ensure Quality Education of Our Children and Youth Who Are Homeless (November 2009), the first of a series of "summits" and co-sponsored by HCEF and The Pittsburgh Foundation.

And Summit II: Collaborations and Models Impacting Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness, April 8,2011.

Summit III: Poverty and Its Impact on Brain Development and Learning
Rivers Club, Friday, May 4, 2012.

(up dated 1/14/12)

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