Poverty and homelessness remain a pervasive issue for students across New York

By Emilie Munson, Data Reporter

Nov 30, 2024

ALBANY — More than 155,000 public school students experienced homelessness in New York in the 2022-23 school year, the highest level since at least 2009.

Data from the New York State Technical and Educational Assistance Center for Homeless Students (NYS TEACHS) shows student homelessness is especially acute in New York City, and it’s also been increasing around the state, including in rural areas. Three quarters of all counties saw an increase in the percent of their public school student body that was homeless in the period between the 2018-19 and 2022-23 school years.

In all, 6.4% of New York public school students were homeless in 2022-23, whether living on the streets, in a shelter, in a hotel or doubled up in the residence of family or friends. The problem is unfolding as the state works to address persistent child poverty across the state.

“It is a real indication of New York’s problem with child poverty and with the financial strain that families are facing right now,” said Kari Siddiqui, project director for the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy, a non-partisan public charity that works on child poverty issues. “So many families are struggling right now … inflation is down now, but families are still feeling it, particularly with regards to food and housing.”

Student homelessness declined during the pandemic thanks to emergency measures that blocked evictions, helped families pay rent, provided cash stimulus and prioritized keeping people in shelters. But those measures have expired, and housing insecurity has since worsened.

Detailed data on total student homelessness across New York from last school year is not yet available. At least 138,393 students statewide were homeless on one school day in October 2023, but that number reflects the estimate at that time and is not reflective of all homeless students during last school year. The October 2023 count was higher than that same month in 2022 and 2021.

Advocates for Children of New York found in New York City during the last school year that more than 146,000 students — or about one in every eight public schoolchildren — experienced homelessness.

“Student homelessness has skyrocketed over the past decade, but right now, districts receive no additional per-pupil funding from the state to help meet the educational needs of students in temporary housing,” said Kim Sweet, executive director of Advocates for Children of New York.

A federal law requires schools to identify youth who are homeless and assist them with enrolling in school, transportation and participating in school activities, including getting meals. The state Education Department assists school staff with some of this work.

As student homelessness has grown, the number of students who have no shelter at night has declined slightly over the years, NYS TEACHS data shows. But the number of students sleeping in shelters and in hotels or motels was at record levels in the 2022-23 school year. Students who were “doubled up” — staying in someone else’s home — also reached near-record levels that year. The earliest data available from NY TEACHS is from 15 years ago.

More than 550 families are living in hotels and motels in Dutchess, Orange, Sullivan and Ulster counties as homelessness surges and shelters fill up, a recent study by Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress found. Families are placed in hotels or motels, paid for by taxpayers, when shelters are full. Residing in hotels poses challenges for children and families as rooms often lack kitchens. Hotels also don’t have the additional services shelters may provide, students may face long bus rides to get to school and families are sometimes relocated due to room shortages.

Joan Hunt, executive director of the Greater Hudson Promise Neighborhood, said her organization is working to prevent more people from falling into homelessness. With high rents, low vacancy rates and rapid gentrification, housing is a critical struggle in Hudson, a hotspot for income migration from New York City during the pandemic. In just six weeks, Greater Hudson Promise Neighborhood spent $65,000 in government grant money to provide rental assistance for people falling behind on payments or facing eviction, Hunt said.

“Our main focus right now is keeping people where they are,” she said. “There is nowhere for people to go, not even emergency shelter at this point.”

Migrants, primarily from Latin America, also are accessing the state’s shelter resources and may be counted among homeless students. But Advocates for Children and the Schuyler Center said that’s one piece of a broader landscape of persistent child poverty in New York.

In general, stress, instability, trauma and school mobility created by homelessness can damage children’s physical, social and emotional health and hinder their education, according to the Learning Policy Institute. Homeless students are at risk for chronic absenteeism and dropping out of school.

Across New York, nearly one in five children live in poverty, placing the state in the top 10 for highest levels of child poverty in the U.S., with a rate 2.5% higher than the national average, according to a report this year by the office of state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. While rates of poverty have typically been higher for children under 5, in 2022 that trend reversed, with the rate of poverty for children between age 5 and 17 surpassing that of younger children.

Child poverty rates in upstate cities are among the highest in the nation, with between 40% and 46% of children in Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo found to be living in poverty in 2022. Nearly 30% of children in Albany were living in poverty the same year.

The Times Union found outside of New York City, the counties with the highest percentage of students who were homeless in the 2022-23 school year were Oswego, Rockland, Sullivan, Onondaga and Warren counties. Syracuse is located in Onondaga County, which is neighbored by Oswego County.

Many children who are not homeless are still facing housing instability, such as the threat of eviction, frequent moves or high rents, according to a report last year from the Children’s Agenda. The report predicted rising inflation and the housing crisis mean student homelessness will continue to grow exponentially if steps are not taken to address them.

In 2021, looking for solutions to persistent child poverty, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law the Child Poverty Reduction Act, which declared the issue to be a public policy priority and created an advisory council to recommend solutions. It established a goal of cutting child poverty in half by 2031.

This month, the advisory council issued a draft report of recommendations to cut child poverty by 50%. Their top recommendations included making the state’s child tax credit more generous, increasing cash assistance and extending food assistance programs to more people, creating a state housing voucher program that would fill gaps in the federal program and reform existing programs to increase participation. The council is expected to vote next month to finalize their recommendations.

Advocates hope that legislators and the governor will make progress toward enacting their recommendations next year during the legislative session, Siddiqui said.

Original article: https://www.timesunion.com/education/article/new-york-homeless-public-school-students-grows-19943909.php