Pullman Public Schools

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act is a federal law that guarantees all children and youth the right to an equal education regardless of their living situation. Protection under the McKinney-Vento Act extends to those who lack a fixed, regular, and inadequate nighttime residence. This includes:

• Children and youth sharing housing due to loss of housing, economic hardship or a similar reason
• Children and youth living in emergency or transitional shelters or transitional housing (this generally includes a time limit on the housing assistance and case management by the housing agency)
• Children and youth living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camp grounds due to lack of alternative accommodations
• Children and youth abandoned in hospitals
• Children and youth living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations
• Children and youth whose primary nighttime residence is not ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation (e.g. park benches, etc)
• Migratory children and youth living in any of the above situations

Under the McKinney-Vento Act, your eligible children have the right to:

The McKinney-Vento Education of Homeless Children and Youth Assistance Act is a federal law that ensures immediate enrollment and educational stability for homeless children and youth. McKinney-Vento provides federal funding to states for the purpose of supporting district programs that serve homeless students.

• Receive a free, appropriate public education.

• Enroll in school immediately, even if lacking documents normally required for enrollment.

• Enroll in school and attend classes while the school gathers needed documents.

• Enroll in the local school; or continue attending their school of origin (the school they attended when permanently housed or the school in which they were last enrolled), if that is your preference. **If the school district believes that the school you select is not in the best interest of your children, then the district must provide you with a written explanation of its position and inform you of your right to appeal its decision.

• Receive transportation to and from the school of origin, if you request this.

• Receive educational services comparable to those provided to other students, according to your children’s needs.

If you believe your children may be eligible, please contact the support liaisons below to find out what services and supports may be available. There also may be supports available for your preschool-age children.

• The counselor at your child’s school

• Pullman School District Local Liaison – Paula Bates 509-332-3144

• For all Washington State technical assistance questions and inquiries, you may contact the McKinney-Vento Office at the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction at 360-725-6505 or mckinneyvento@k12.wa.us

• If you need further assistance with your children’s educational needs, you may contact the National Center for Homeless Education at 1-800-308-2145 or homeless@serve.org * NCHE Website

Transportation requests may be made by:

• Contact the School : Contact the main office of the school your child attends and ask for the McKinney-Vento building point of contact for assistance;
• Contact the District : Call the McKinney-Vento District Liaison, Paula Bates at 509-332-3144 or email pbates@psd267.org.

Visit our Community Resources for Families page for information on where to find additional support services in Whitman and Latah County.

National Resources Around Homelessness

• National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth – NAEHCY is a voice and social conscience for the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness. NAEHCY accomplishes this through advocacy, partnerships, and education.

• National Center for Homeless Education – NCHE is the U.S. Department of Education’s technical assistance and information center in the area of homeless education.

• National Law Center for Homelessness and Poverty – Lawyers working to end homelessness.

• National Network for Youth – NN4Y works to create a community of agencies, people and resources to champion the needs of homeless and runaway youth, to ensure that opportunities for growth and development be available to youth everywhere.