The education sector should collaborate more closely with housing, health and community systems to address barriers to homeless students’ learning, according to a series of reports released by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Center for the Transformation of Schools.
The reports analyzed trends in student homelessness in four Western states: Arizona, California, Utah and Nevada. Researchers found that while student homelessness rates vary, “the consistency of the educational disparities across states” shows housing instability is closely related to students’ attendance, performance and outcomes.
State and local leaders should strengthen and standardize homeless student identification, improve data collection and reporting, coordinate sectors that help the homeless student population, address racial and geographic disparities, and expand transportation, academic, attendance and school-stability supports, the reports said.
A separate report released by SchoolHouse Connection and Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan in September found about 1 in 29 infants and toddlers experienced homelessness in 2023-24, and fewer than 1 in 10 were confirmed to have reached an early childhood program.
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