Read

User menu

Search form

Number Of Homeless Students In United States Hits Record High

Number Of Homeless Students In United States Hits Record High
Tue, 11/5/2013 - by Scott Keyes
This article originally appeared on Think Progress

More than 1.1 million students in the United States were homeless last year, a record high, according to new data released by the U.S. Department of Education.

During the 2011-12 school year, there were 1,168,354 homeless students enrolled in preschool or K-12, a 10 percent increase over the previous year. A total of 55.5 million students were enrolled in preschool or K-12 that year, meaning nearly 2 percent of all students were homeless.

According to First Focus, a children’s advocacy organization, “the number of homeless children in public schools has increased 72 percent since the beginning of the recession.” The states with the largest increase in student homelessness include North Dakota (212 percent), Maine (58 percent), and North Carolina (53 percent).

It’s important to note that the number of homeless students in the United States doesn’t capture the full extent of youth homelessness. Many young homeless people are infants, weren’t properly identified as homeless by the survey, or have dropped out (or been kicked out) of school.

The last factor is particularly true for LGBT youth, who represent a disproportionate share of homeless youth. According to a new report from the Center for American Progress, factors like family rejection, bullying, and poor performance in school forces many LGBT youth onto the streets.

There are many other factors driving the uptick in student homelessness. Middle class wages have stagnated, leaving many families unable to afford basic living. More than $2 billion in sequestration cuts to low-income housing assistance is estimated to leave 140,000 households without help covering their rent or mortgage.

And in many parts of the country like San Francisco and Washington, DC, housing is becoming increasingly unaffordable for those not relatively well-off.

Still, even with the number of homeless students at an all-time high, the situation could soon become even worse if food stamps are cut. Currently, 45 percent of food stamp recipients are children.

In 2011 alone, 4.7 million households were lifted out of poverty thanks to food stamps. If Republicans succeed in their quest to cut the program, the number of children living in poverty would increase substantially. And even if the GOP is held at bay, automatic cuts to food stamps were due to kick in on November 1, returning the program to pre-stimulus levels and likely resulting in even more homeless students in the wealthiest country in the world.

Originally published by Think Progress

3 WAYS TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

ONE-TIME DONATION

Just use the simple form below to make a single direct donation.

DONATE NOW

MONTHLY DONATION

Be a sustaining sponsor. Give a reacurring monthly donation at any level.

GET SOME MERCH!

Now you can wear your support too! From T-Shirts to tote bags.

SHOP TODAY

Sign Up

Article Tabs

Ending fascists’ grip on power not only requires voting them out, but replacing them with the right people.

One pressing question is how the worldwide outrage might, and could, spread to his other business interests, not least his largest interest: SpaceX.

There is a real human cost behind cold, calculated “efficiency.”

Musk's unelected role at the forefront of U.S. government, and his company's near monopolisation of satellite internet communications, increases his global political and economic power grab, and attacks on democracy.

A rug pull occurs when a ‘meme’ or ‘shit’ coin is created, investors pour in, and the price spikes — at which point the early stakeholders sell and tank the coin’s value, as happened with the $TRUMP token.

Ending fascists’ grip on power not only requires voting them out, but replacing them with the right people.

One pressing question is how the worldwide outrage might, and could, spread to his other business interests, not least his largest interest: SpaceX.

There is a real human cost behind cold, calculated “efficiency.”

In many European countries, the far right holds or shares power. Democracy is in crisis.

Posted 2 months 19 hours ago

If Trump indeed tanks your 401(k) to make himself and his friends even richer, the opposition party should make that the centerpiece of their attack heading into next year’s election.

Posted 2 months 20 hours ago

Yarvin saw the “red pill” as the realization that the Enlightenment ideals he came to associate with “the cathedral” and democracy are actually a poison leading to societal decadence and decline.

Posted 1 month 1 week ago

As the American public continues to publicly stand up to the administration, Trump’s grip on power will eventually slip.

Posted 1 month 1 week ago

It is clear that authoritarian fascists, in the United States and elsewhere, do not want education that promotes critical thinking.

Posted 1 month 1 week ago

Musk's unelected role at the forefront of U.S. government, and his company's near monopolisation of satellite internet communications, increases his global political and economic power grab, and attacks on democracy.

There is a real human cost behind cold, calculated “efficiency.”