Homeless Education Staff
| Kati Auton | Homeless Liaison |
| Brenda Degioanni | Homeless Liaison Coordinator |
| Carolyn Glaze | Homeless Liaison Coordinator |
| Anita McCurley | Homeless Liaison |
| Dayna Parker | Homeless Liaison Coordinator |
Homeless Education Program
The Homeless Education Program operates in accordance with the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (M-V), which ensures educational rights for children and youth experiencing homelessness. The primary goal is to provide educational stability by eliminating educational barriers and promoting academic success for students facing homelessness.
Definition
- M-V defines homeless students as those who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This includes children and youth who:
- share the housing of other persons due to the loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason;
- live in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations;
- live in emergency or transitional shelters; or
- are abandoned in hospitals;
- Children and youth who have a primary nighttime residence that is not ordinarily used as regular sleeping accommodations for human beings;
- Children and youth who live in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; or
- Migratory children who are living in circumstances set forth in the situations above.
Homeless Unaccompanied Youth are students who are not in the physical custody of a parent/guardian and are living in one of the situations listed above.
Educational Rights for Eligible Students
- Enroll in school immediately, even if they are lacking documents normally required for enrollment.
- Choose between the local school where they are living or the school last attended before becoming homeless, when feasible.
- Receive transportation assistance to the school of origin when requested by a parent/guardian/homeless unaccompanied youth.
- Attend school and participate in school programs with children who are not homeless. Students cannot be separated from the regular school program because they are homeless.
- Receive school services comparable to services offered to other students.
Eligibility for M-V is determined by Cobb County School District’s Homeless Education Program staff. For more information, contact the Homeless Education Program.
