Nearly 1 in 7 NYC public school children are homeless, a record high: report

All-time high 154,000 children in New York City public schools Nearly one in seven people were homeless during the last school year, according to data released Monday as the city faces a worsening affordability crisis.

New York City Children's Advocates, the author of the report, put the shocking new data into context: If homeless students had their own school district, it would be one of the 20 largest educational systems in the country.

“There are now more homeless students in New York than in the entire Dallas public school system,” said Jennifer Pringle, director of a project targeting students in transitional housing at Advocates for Children.

The implications for a child's education are profound. “Just this year we worked with families whose children I've already missed a whole month of school due to a lack of coordination between shelters and school systems,” Pringle said.

Of the homeless students, 42% spent several nights or even an entire school year in homeless shelters, according to the report. More than half stayed temporarily with friends or extended family, often sleeping in cramped spaces or on sofas and floors. About 7,000 children were homeless or otherwise lacked a decent place to sleep.

In some neighborhoods, including East Harlem and the Bronx Concourse, student homelessness rates have reached one in five children. And in the throes of a migration crisis that has since subsidedManhattan schools had the highest proportion of students in shelters.

Latoya Iheanacho shuttled her three children between shelters in the Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn, all within the space of one year. According to her, her husband left the family when the daily tasks became “too much.” “I had no choice to leave.”

Each new shelter location presented a new challenge for Iheanacho and her children trying to get to Public School 219 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The school bus dropped off children who were late for class, and Iheanacho was warned that she might be late. reported neglect to child protective services. She quit her job at a mental hospital and drove them to school herself, woke up at 4 a.m. and took two subways and a bus from one of the shelters.

It was never enough.

“They are tired and are going to sleep in the classroom,” Iheanacho said. “At the shelter it was, ‘I’m going to go to sleep. I don’t even care about homework.” »

More than two in three students in homeless shelters were chronically absent in the 2023-24 school year, up slightly from the year before, new data shows. Their state test scores were about half those of their classmates.

And bye a degree can make a huge difference. As for whether a child will become homeless again as an adult, one in eight students in shelters dropped out of school—three times the rate of their peers.

“Education is the key to breaking the cycle of homelessness,” said Chiann Tull, spokeswoman for the city's public schools. “And we will continue to strengthen our interagency and data-driven trauma-informed strategies to help students and families thrive.”

Under Mayor Adams, the city changed its education funding formula. send extra dollars to schools with large numbers of homeless students. The city also provides enrollment and immunization assistance, school staff at shelters, and attendance programs that focus on resources for families such as food and clothing.

Advocates want the city's next mayor to go even further.

“Ensuring homeless students have the support they need to succeed in school should be a top priority,” said Maria Odom, executive director of Advocates for Children.

Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic frontrunner in the mayoral race, has proposed expanding the program, which promotes relationships between homeless students and caring adults. Andrew Cuomo, a former governor who voted for Mamdani, said he would prioritize schools where students live in temporary housing to partner with community organizations.

Advocates for Children is calling on city agencies to work together to place children in shelters closer to school, address high truancy rates and improve school bus service. The organization also called on state lawmakers to adjust the school aid formula, which despite recent adjustments, still does not provide additional funding support for students in temporary housing. A check This revision is being considered in Albany.

Iheanacho received housing voucher and moved into a small apartment in Jamaica, Queens. Her younger children are enrolled in programs closer to home, and her oldest daughter travels an hour and a half to graduate with her friends. She is an eighth grader who reads at a second grade level but is enthusiastic about math and art classes.

The family is afraid to return to the shelter. Recently there was a fire in the apartment above them and water sprinklers flooded their apartment and property. On Wednesday, Iheanacho notified her security team of her plans to quit due to low pay and benefits issues.

“I wash the clothes, the money is gone. I can't buy them a shirt or a uniform because there is no money,” Iheanacho said. “I can't live off this.”