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Connects these obstacles to Higher Education Act “dependent student” verification rules and assesses state implementation progress under the Every Student Succeeds Act. Concludes with policy and practice recommendations, while outlining limitations of FAFSA data for representing the full homeless student population.",{"@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/this-is-how-im-going-to-make-a-life-for-myself-an-analysis-of-fafsa-data-and-barriers-to-financial-aid-for-unaccompanied-homeless-youth-february-21-2017/586770/",{"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/this-is-how-im-going-to-make-a-life-for-myself-an-analysis-of-fafsa-data-and-barriers-to-financial-aid-for-unaccompanied-homeless-youth-february-21-2017/586770.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Sarah ","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-01","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},"Why is post-secondary education especially important for youth experiencing homelessness?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"Post-secondary education improves life outcomes and can reduce the risk of continued homelessness in adulthood.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"What rule under the Higher Education Act creates a barrier for unaccompanied homeless youth?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"Youth under age 24 are generally treated as dependent students, requiring parental income information and a parental signature, which unaccompanied homeless youth cannot provide.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What are key limitations of using FAFSA data for this analysis?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"FAFSA does not capture the overall number of homeless students at post-secondary institutions and only reflects youth who self-identify as unaccompanied homeless when completing the application, excluding other relevant categories.","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},586770,1792065221,{"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":139,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":144,"read_time":36,"preview_page_count":4},962085320529,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_9964176cb1d06d4a9deccf72a44ae3dc","“This is How I’m Going to Make a Life for Myself:”  \nAn Analysis of FAFSA Data and Barriers to Financial Aid for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth  \nFebruary 21, 2017  \nOver 95 percent of the jobs created since 2010 have gone to college-educated workers, and by 2020, 65 percent of all jobs will require education beyond high school.1 Thus, for youth experiencing homelessness, post-secondary education is critical for improving life outcomes, including reducing the risk of continued homelessness as adults. As indicated by the title of this report – a quote from a young adult who experienced homelessness in high school and in college – many young people are keenly aware of the role of higher education in improving their lives. Yet without financial aid, these young people cannot access post-secondary education.  \nThis report analyzes newly available data from the U.S. Department of Education that provide important insights into the challenges that unaccompanied homeless youth face in accessing federal financial aid. The data also provide baseline information to assess states’ progress in implementing important new provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) that were enacted to help students experiencing homelessness transition from high school to postsecondary education. We conclude our analysis with recommendations for policy and practice, including the upcoming reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.  \nBACKGROUND  \nUnder the Higher Education Act, youth who are under age 24 generally are considered“dependent students,” meaning they must supply parental income information and a parental signature in order to be considered for federal financial aid. This policy created a barrier for youth who are homeless and on their own (unaccompanied homeless youth), who live in extreme poverty and are not being supported by their parents. To address this barrier, the Higher Education Act specifies that unaccompanied homeless youth are considered“independent students” if they are verified as such by certain federal program staff, including school district homeless liaisons; directors or designees of Runaway and Homeless Youth Act  \n1 Carnevale, Anthony, Smith, Nicole, and Strohl, Jeff (2014) . Recovery: Job Growth and Education Requirements Through 2020. Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce. Available at:  \n[https://cew.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Recovery2020.ES_.Web_.pdf](https://cew.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Recovery2020.ES_.Web_.pdf).  \n(RHYA) programs; directors or designees of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Homeless Assistance programs; or financial aid directors.  \nWhile this policy has led to important improvements in access to financial aid for homeless youth, many barriers remain. A report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in May 2016 found that:  \n• Burdensome program rules can hinder the ability of homeless youth to access federal supports.  \n• Extensive documentation requests can impede access to aid for homeless youth.  \n• Annual re-verification of homelessness poses barriers for unaccompanied homeless youth.  \nThe GAO report is not the only study to document such barriers.2  \nU.S. Department of Education data from the 2015-2016 Application Cycle of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) provide information that can help us assess the implementation of protections for students experiencing homelessness, and that raise concerns about the scale and nature of the barriers. The data also permit a state-by-state analysis of implementation of post-secondary transition requirements in ESSA.  \nLIMITATIONS OF THE DATA  \nIt is important to note that the data collected on unaccompanied homeless youth on the FAFSA are not representative of the entire population of FAFSA applicants experiencing homelessness. The FAFSA does not collect information on the number of homeless students attending post-secondary institutions. It also collects no inf","cbCailZ7mqszE3aw","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCailZ7mqszE3aw","pdf",798522,16,"English","# Background\n## Federal eligibility rules and the dependent vs. independent barrier\n## Documented barriers from GAO (May 2016)\n# Limitations of the Data\n## Who is and is not captured in FAFSA reporting\n## What cannot be inferred nationally\n# Continuing Barriers Indicated by the Data\n## Areas of concern identified in the analysis","[{\"question\":\"Why is post-secondary education especially important for youth experiencing homelessness?\",\"answer\":\"Post-secondary education improves life outcomes and can reduce the risk of continued homelessness in adulthood.\"},{\"question\":\"What rule under the Higher Education Act creates a barrier for unaccompanied homeless youth?\",\"answer\":\"Youth under age 24 are generally treated as dependent students, requiring parental income information and a parental signature, which unaccompanied homeless youth cannot provide.\"},{\"question\":\"What are key limitations of using FAFSA data for this analysis?\",\"answer\":\"FAFSA does not capture the overall number of homeless students at post-secondary institutions and only reflects youth who self-identify as unaccompanied homeless when completing the application, excluding other relevant categories.\"}]","“This is How I’m Going to Make a Life for Myself:” - An Analysis of FAFSA Data and Barriers to Financial Aid for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth - February 21, 2017 | PDF",1792059273]