The U.S. Conference of Mayors held its 73rd Annual Meeting in Chicago on June 11-14, 2005. The Conference adopted a resolution to streamline the federal definition of homelessness in America, with particular emphasis on ensuring that the reality of family homelessness be reflected in the definition. The definition that the Conference proposed be adopted by all federal government agencies is that used by the U.S. Department of Education in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
View the resolution.
Date added: 6/16/05

The NAEHCY Beam, June 2005

The Beam, the newsletter for the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY), provides important legislative updates and stories of interest to the homeless education community.
Download the June 2005 edition of the Beam. (176K)
Date added: 6/10/05

Students in Department of Defense schools have similar mobility rates, parental education levels, and low-income status to students in inner-city schools; yet, they consistently demonstrate higher academic achievement than the national average. This digest presents the results of a 2001 study by researchers from Vanderbilt University on the consistent high achievement of African American and Latino students in Department of Defense schools and identifies policies and practices that may contribute to the success of these schools.
Download the digest.
Date added: 6/09/05

This report captures the participation, action and research of a group of Colorado educators studying educational practices for homeless and highly mobile students. The Colorado Participatory Action Research (CO PAR) project spanned the 2003-2004 school year, and embarked on new territory in both action research and professional development for the participating educators. The 11 chapters contained in the report describe their diverse action research projects.
Download the report.
Date added: 6/09/05

This report, published by the Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago, is the second from the Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth, a longitudinal study of youth aging out of foster care and transitioning to adulthood in Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois. The report suggests that youth making the transition from foster care to young adulthood face significant challenges, including educational deficits, mental health problems, economic insecurity, victimization, and a heightened risk of experiencing homelessness.
View the report abstract.
Download the full report.
Date added: 5/24/05

Marketplace is public radio's daily magazine of business and economics. This 4 1/2 minute audio broadcast, released in May 2005, presents the often dismal position in which foster care alumni find themselves at the time of their emancipation. It provides an up-close and personal look at the challenges foster care children face.
Listen to the broadcast.
Date added: 5/09/05

This bilingual poster, developed by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, provides helpful information to Hmong parents and unaccompanied youth. It explains, in Hmong and English, who qualifies as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act and lists the educational rights of children and youth experiencing homelessness. This four-color poster is available for purchase for $10.00 per set of ten.
Download the order form. (234K)
Date added: 5/02/05

This report, compiled by the National Association to End Homelessness, examines the nature of family homelessness, families' experience of homelessness, and successful interventions in Washington, DC and across the nation.
Download the report.
Date added: 4/22/05