[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-587781-105":59,"doc-detail-587781-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","student-homelessness-at-a-new-high-targeted-supports-for-high-risk-students","Student Homelessness at a New High - Targeted Supports for High-Risk Students","","Wisconsin’s public schools reported a record number of homeless students in the 2023-24 academic year, reaching 20,195—9.1% higher than the prior year despite overall enrollment declining. The increase likely reflects both rising family homelessness and improved identification, while past declines were linked to COVID-era supports and underreporting during virtual learning. The brief explains the federal McKinney-Vento definition, contrasts state versus HUD counts, reviews trends, and highlights disparities by student group and district practices to strengthen outreach and services.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/student-homelessness-at-a-new-high-targeted-supports-for-high-risk-students/587781/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/student-homelessness-at-a-new-high-targeted-supports-for-high-risk-students/587781.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Melati","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-30","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":39},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"How many homeless students were identified in Wisconsin public schools in 2023-24?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"The number rose to 20,195 during the 2023-24 school year, the highest since 2019, with a 9.1% increase over the prior year.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"What definition does Wisconsin use to identify homeless students?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"Wisconsin relies on the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act definition, which covers students lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including those “doubled up” due to financial or family changes.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"Why did reported homelessness decrease around 2021 and increase again later?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"Officials linked the 2021 decline partly to COVID-era financial support and housing policies, but attributed much of the decrease to underreporting during virtual learning when districts had fewer opportunities to identify unstable housing. Growth afterward reflects both insufficient housing and improved reporting.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},587781,1793109515,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":39,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":19,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":52,"preview_page_count":4},962085570644,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_994ba38a5ba835b3df7d355c54d3ed8d","Student homelessness at a new high  \nThe reported number of homeless students hit a high mark in Wisconsin’s public schools in the 2023-24 academic year, likely due to both an increase in family homelessness and improved identification of existing need. In light of these reports, school districts and communities may wish to draw on the available data and  \ndevelop targeted supports for these high-risk students.  \nThe number of students in Wisconsin’s public  \nschools identified as homeless increased to 20,195  \nduring the 2023-24 school year (see Figure 1) . This is the highest number since 2019 – the first year for which data are available from Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction – and represents a 9. 1% increase over the previous year despite the total number of enrolled students declining 1.1% .  \nWith homeless individuals often among the least connected to institutions like schools, obtaining accurate counts can be difficult. The state Department of Public Instruction (DPI) relies upon the definition of“homeless” included in the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, which was first passed in 1987 and establishes the educational rights and services for homeless students from pre-kindergarten through high school (see textbox) .  \nThe McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act  \nThe federal McKinney-Vento Act defines homeless children and youth as those who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including those:  \n• sharing housing due to loss of housing or economic hardship  \n• living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or  \ncampgrounds due to lack of alternative accommodations  \n• living in emergency or transitional shelters  \n• sleeping in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, bus or train stations, or substandard housing  \nAmong other provisions, the Act enumerates the rights of homeless students and the obligations of school districts to meet their educational needs. For example, students who lose their housing may continue to attend their original schools even if their temporary housing is no longer in the school’s territory, and districts are responsible for providing transportation from the temporary housing to the schools of origin.  \nThis definition is more expansive than the one used by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which creates wide discrepancies in the counts reported by these two agencies. Most notably, the McKinney-Vento definition includes students who are “doubled up” – that is, living with friends or family due to a change in financial, family, or employment status. Those situations are not included in the federal definition, contributing to the state figures for homeless students in Wisconsin being much higher than the federal figures for all homeless individuals in the state. Despite the count differences, however, both agencies show recent increases in homelessness, as our previous research has shown.  \ntrends over time  \nThe number of reported homeless students in Wisconsin increased for a third consecutive year in 2023-24 (referred to in this brief as 2024) after hitting its lowest level on record at the height of the pandemic in 2021. That low point and subsequent increase coincide with the trend across the country as reported by the National Center for Homeless Education. National data from 2023 and 2024 are not yet available.  \nLocal school officials we interviewed credit some of the 2021 decline to COVID-era financial support and housing policies such as eviction moratoriums.  \nHowever, they attribute much more of the decrease to underreporting due to virtual learning, which is how most districts began that school year. In virtual school settings, there are fewer opportunities for districts to identify students with unstable housing. Some of these opportunities occur during day-to-day interactions between students and school staff members. In addition, many families self-identify as homeless during annual enrollment periods when tran","cbCaic1G0YIRZE8p","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaic1G0YIRZE8p","pdf",223025,"English","# Student homelessness at a new high\n## Record counts in Wisconsin (2023-24)\n## Defining homelessness and educational rights\n## Trends over time and the role of reporting\n## How districts identify students\n## Divergences among student groups and district types","[{\"question\":\"How many homeless students were identified in Wisconsin public schools in 2023-24?\",\"answer\":\"The number rose to 20,195 during the 2023-24 school year, the highest since 2019, with a 9.1% increase over the prior year.\"},{\"question\":\"What definition does Wisconsin use to identify homeless students?\",\"answer\":\"Wisconsin relies on the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act definition, which covers students lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including those “doubled up” due to financial or family changes.\"},{\"question\":\"Why did reported homelessness decrease around 2021 and increase again later?\",\"answer\":\"Officials linked the 2021 decline partly to COVID-era financial support and housing policies, but attributed much of the decrease to underreporting during virtual learning when districts had fewer opportunities to identify unstable housing. Growth afterward reflects both insufficient housing and improved reporting.\"}]","Student Homelessness at a New High - Targeted Supports for High-Risk Students | PDF",1792063032]