Homeless Student Resources

The Tri-Valley School District believes that homeless children should have access to free and appropriate public education and wishes to limit the barriers that homeless children may face. Our goal is to have the educational process continue as uninterrupted as possible while children are in homeless situations.

Homeless students are defined as individuals lacking a fixed, regular and nighttime residence, which include students living under the following conditions:

• • Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing or economic hardship

  • Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks or camping grounds due to lack of adequate alternative accommodations

  • Living in emergency, transitional or domestic violence shelters

  • Abandoned in hospitals

  • Living in public or private places not designed for or ordinarily used as regular sleeping accommodations for human beings

  • Living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, transportation stations or similar settings

• Living as migratory children in conditions described in previous examples

• Living as run-away children

• Being abandoned or forced out of homes by parents/guardians or caretakers

• Living as school age unwed mothers in houses for unwed mothers if they have no other living accommodations

A child or youth who is not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian may be defined as unaccompanied youth if the child is also homeless and therefore lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. 

Children and youth experiencing homelessness have the right to:

• Continue their education in their current school, and receive transportation OR enroll immediately in the school where they are temporarily housed, even if lacking the paperwork normally required

• Participate in all applicable school programs, including supplemental services

• Receive free lunch

• Receive assistance with school-related expenses such as supplies, clothing, uniforms, etc.