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Lodi Unified School District

Policy 6173 - Education for Homeless Children

Series: 6000 - Instruction

Policy: 6173 - Education for Homeless Children

Adopted: 11/19/2002

Last Revised: 05/05/2026

Last Reviewed: 05/05/2026

Download Policy 6173 - Education for Homeless Children PDF (English)

Download Rule 6173 - Education for Homeless Children PDF (English)

Education for homeless children

The Board of Education believes that the identification of students experiencing homelessness is critical to improving the educational outcomes of such students and ensuring that students experiencing homelessness have access to the same free and appropriate public education provided to other students within the district. The district shall provide students experiencing homelessness with access to education and other services necessary for such students to meet the same challenging academic standards as other students.
 
When there are at least 15 students experiencing homelessness in the district or a district school, the district’s local control and accountability plan (LCAP) shall include goals and specific action to improve student achievement and other outcomes of students experiencing homelessness.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall review district policies at least once every three years and recommend updates to ensure removal of any barriers to the education of students experiencing homelessness and unaccompanied youth. Any such review shall address identification, enrollment, and retention of such students, including those barriers that are due to absences or outstanding fees or fines.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall designate an appropriate staff person to serve as a liaison for children and youths experiencing homelessness. The district liaison for students experiencing homelessness shall fulfill the duties specified in 42 USC 11432 to assist in identifying and supporting students experiencing homelessness to succeed in school, and as specified in Education Code 48851.3 related to trainings for district staff providing assistance to students experiencing homelessness.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that each district school identifies all students experiencing homelessness and unaccompanied youths enrolled at the school.
 
To ensure easy identification of students experiencing homelessness, the Superintendent or designee shall annually provide and administer a housing questionnaire developed by the California Department of Education (CDE) to all parents/guardians of students and all unaccompanied youths.
 
If the primary language of a student's parent/guardian or an unaccompanied youth is not English, either the housing questionnaire shall be made available in the primary language of the student's parent/guardian or the unaccompanied youth pursuant to Education Code 48985, or an appropriate translation of the housing questionnaire shall be provided upon request of a student's parent/guardian or an unaccompanied youth.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall report to CDE the number of students experiencing homelessness, including unaccompanied youths, enrolled in the district as identified from the housing questionnaire described above.
 
Additionally, the Superintendent or designee shall ensure that the district liaison's contact information and other information on homelessness, including, but not limited to, information regarding the educational rights and resources available to persons experiencing homelessness, are posted on the district and school websites as specified in the accompanying Board rule.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that placement decisions for students experiencing homelessness are based on the student's best interest as defined in law and Board rule.
Each student experiencing homelessness shall be provided services that are comparable to services offered to other students in the school, including, but not limited to, transportation, educational programs for which the student meets the eligibility criteria (such as federal Title I services or similar state or local programs, programs for students with disabilities, and educational programs for English learners), career and technical education programs, programs for gifted and talented students, and school nutrition programs.
 
Students experiencing homelessness shall not be segregated into a separate school or program based on their status as homeless and shall not be stigmatized in any way. However, the Superintendent or designee may separate students experiencing homelessness on school grounds as necessary for short periods of time for health and safety emergencies or to provide temporary, special, and supplementary services to meet their unique needs.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that information and/or materials for students experiencing homelessness are provided in a manner and form understandable to the student's parents/guardians and to unaccompanied youths.
 
Information about the living situation of a student experiencing homelessness shall be considered part of a student's educational record, subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, shall not be deemed to be directory information as defined in 20 USC 1232g, and shall not be released without written consent.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall coordinate with other agencies and entities to ensure that students experiencing homelessness are promptly identified, have access to and are in reasonable proximity to available education and related support services, and raise the awareness of school personnel and service providers of the effects of short-term stays in a shelter and other challenges associated with homelessness. Toward these ends, the Superintendent or designee shall collaborate with local social services agencies, other agencies or entities providing services to students experiencing homelessness, and, if applicable, transitional housing facilities. Additionally, the Superintendent or designee shall coordinate transportation, transfer of school records, and other interdistrict activities with other local educational agencies. As necessary, the Superintendent or designee shall coordinate, within the district and with other involved local educational agencies, services for students experiencing homelessness and services for students with disabilities.
 
At least annually, the district liaison and other appropriate staff shall participate in professional development and other technical assistance activities to assist them in identifying and meeting the needs of students experiencing homelessness. Such professional development and technical assistance shall include, but are not limited to, training on the district's homeless education program policies, definitions of terms related to homelessness, recognition of signs that students are experiencing or are at risk of experiencing homelessness, the steps that should be taken once a student is potentially experiencing homelessness student is identified, and how to connect students experiencing homelessness with appropriate housing and service providers.
 
At least annually, the Superintendent or designee shall report to the Board on the identification of and outcomes for students experiencing homelessness, which may include, but are not limited to, the housing questionnaire responses, school attendance, student achievement test results, promotion and retention rates by grade level, graduation rates, suspension/expulsion rates, and other outcomes related to any goals and specific actions identified in the LCAP. Based on the evaluation data, the district shall revise its strategies as needed to more effectively identify and support the education of students experiencing homelessness.

Rule 6173

Adopted: 11/19/2002
Last Revised: 05/05/2026
Last Reviewed: 05/05/2026

Homeless students or students experiencing homelessness means students who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence and includes:
 
  1. Students who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; or are abandoned in hospitals
     
  2. Students who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as regular sleeping accommodations for human beings
     
  3. Students who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings
     
  4. Migratory students who qualify as homeless because the students are living in conditions described in 1-3 above
     
  5. Unaccompanied youth includes a homeless child or youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian  
School of origin means the school that the student experiencing homelessness attended when permanently housed or the school in which the student was last enrolled, including a preschool.  If the school the student experiencing homelessness attended when permanently housed is different from the school in which the student was last enrolled, or if there is some other school that the student attended within the preceding 15 months and with which the student is connected, the district liaison for homeless students, in consultation with and with the agreement of the student experiencing homelessness and the person holding the right to make educational decisions for the student, shall determine which school is, in the best interests of the student experiencing homelessness, deemed the school of origin. 
 
Best interest means that, in making educational and school placement decisions for a student experiencing homelessness, considerations given to, among other factors, educational stability, the opportunity to be educated in the least restrictive educational setting necessary to achieve academic progress, and the student’s access to academic resources, services, and extra-curricular and enrichment activities that are available to all district students.
 
District Liaison
The Superintendent or designee designates the following staff person(s) as the district liaison(s) for homeless students:
 
Director of Education/Community Liaison Assistant
1305 E. Vine Street, Lodi, CA  95240
(209) 331-8908
              
The district’s liaison for homeless students shall:
 
  1. Ensure that students experiencing homelessness are identified by school personnel and through outreach and coordination activities with other entities and agencies
     
  2. Ensure that students experiencing homelessness are enrolled in, and have a full and equal opportunity to succeed in, district schools
     
  3. Ensure that families and students experiencing homelessness have access to and receive educational services for which they are eligible, including services through Head Start and Early Head Start programs, early intervention services under Part C of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and other preschool programs administered by the district
     
  4. Ensure that families and students experiencing homelessness receive referrals to health care services, dental services, mental health and substance abuse services, housing services, and other appropriate services
     
  5. Inform parents/guardians of the educational and related opportunities available to their children and ensure that they are provided with meaningful opportunities to participate in the education of their children
     
  6. Disseminate public notice of the educational rights of students experiencing homelessness in locations frequented by parents/guardians of students experiencing homelessness and by unaccompanied youth, including schools, shelters, public libraries, and hunger relief agencies (soup kitchens)

    The rights shall be presented in a manner and form understandable to the parents/guardians of homeless students and unaccompanied youth.
     
  7. Mediate enrollment disputes in accordance with law and the section "Resolving Enrollment Disputes" below
     
  8. Fully inform parents/guardians of students experiencing homelessness and unaccompanied youth of all transportation services, including transportation to the school of origin, and assist them in accessing transportation to the school of choice
     
  9. Offer annual training related to the district's homeless education program policies to school personnel who provide services to students experiencing homelessness, including principals and other school leaders, attendance officers, teachers, enrollment personnel, and specialized instructional support personnel, to ensure that such employees are informed of available training, professional development, and other support, and the services provided by the district liaison for homeless students
     
  10. Ensure that unaccompanied youth are enrolled in school, have opportunities to meet the same challenging state academic standards established for other students, and are informed of their status as independent students under 20 USC 1087vv and that they may receive assistance from the district liaison to receive verification of their independent student status for purposes of applying for federal student aid pursuant to 20 USC 1090
     
  11. Coordinate and collaborate with state coordinators and community and school personnel responsible for the provision of education and related services to students experiencing homelessness, including the collection and provision of comprehensive data to the state coordinator as required by law
Additionally, when notified pursuant to Education Code 48918.1, the district liaison shall assist, facilitate, or represent a student experiencing homelessness who is undergoing a disciplinary proceeding that could result in the student's expulsion. When notified pursuant to Education Code 48915.5, the district liaison shall participate in an individualized education program (IEP) team meeting to make a manifestation determination regarding the behavior of a student with a disability.
 
The Superintendent or designee shall inform students experiencing homelessness, their parents/guardians, school personnel, service providers, and advocates working with homeless families of the duties of the district's liaison. Additionally, the Superintendent or designee shall provide the name and contact information of the district's liaison to the California Department of Education (CDE) for publishing on CDE's website. 
 
Enrollment
The district shall make placement decisions for students experiencing homelessness based on the student’s best interest. 
 
In determining a student’s best interest, a student experiencing homelessness shall, to the extent feasible, be placed in the school of origin, unless the student’s parent/guardian or the unaccompanied youth requests otherwise.
 
When determining the best interest of any student experiencing homelessness, the district shall give priority to the request of the student’s parent/guardian, or in the case of an unaccompanied youth, the request of the student. Additionally, the student's educational stability and opportunity to be educated in the least restrictive educational setting necessary to achieve academic progress and other student-centered factors related to the student's best interest, including the impact of mobility on the student's achievement, education, health, and safety, shall be considered. 
 
Such factors may include, but are not limited to, the age of the student, the distance of the commute and the impact it may have on the student's education, personal safety issues, the student's need for special instruction, the length of anticipated stay in the temporary shelter or other temporary location, likely area of future housing, school placement of siblings, and the time remaining in the school year.
 
However, placement decisions shall not be based on whether a homeless student experiencing homelessness lives with the student’s homeless parent/guardian or has been temporarily placed elsewhere.
 
In the case of an unaccompanied youth, the district liaison shall assist in placement or enrollment decisions, give priority to the views of the student, and provide notice to the student of their appeal rights.
 
Once a placement decision has been made, the principal or designee shall immediately enroll the student in the school of choice.  The student shall be enrolled even if the student:
 
  1. Has outstanding fees, fines, textbooks, or other items or monies due to the school last attended
     
  2. Does not have clothing normally required by the school, such as school uniforms
     
  3. Is unable to produce records normally required for enrollment, such as previous academic records, proof of residency, and records of immunization and other required health records
     
  4. Has missed application or enrollment deadlines during any period of homelessness
The principal or designee shall immediately contact the school last attended by the student to obtain the relevant records.  If the student needs to obtain immunizations or does not possess immunization or other medical records, the principal or designee shall immediately refer the parent/guardian to the district liaison for homeless students.  The district liaison shall assist the parent/guardian, or the student if the student is an unaccompanied youth, in obtaining the necessary screenings, or records for the student.
 
If the student is placed at a school other than the school of origin or a school requested by the parent/guardian or the student, if an unaccompanied youth, the Superintendent or designee shall provide the parent/guardian or the unaccompanied youth with a written explanation of the reasons for the decision, including why placement in the student’s school of origin or requested school is not in the student’s best interest, along with a statement regarding the right to appeal the placement decision. The written explanation shall be in a manner and form understandable to such parent/guardian or unaccompanied youth. 
 
At the point of any change or subsequent change in the residence of a student experiencing homelessness, the student may continue attending the student's school of origin for the duration of homelessness. 
 
To ensure that the homeless student experiencing homelessness has the benefit of matriculating with the student’s peers in accordance with the established feeder patterns, the following shall apply:
 
  1. If the student is transitioning between grade levels, the student shall be allowed to continue in the same attendance area
     
  2. If the student is transitioning to a middle school or high school, and the school designated for matriculation is in another school district, the student shall be allowed to continue to the school designated for matriculation in that district
If the student’s housing status changes before the end of the school year so that the student is no longer experiencing homelessness, the student shall be allowed to stay in the school of origin:
 
  1. Through the duration of the school year if the student is in grades PreK-8
     
  2. Through graduation if the student is in high school
When the district offers an intersession program, priority access shall be given to students experiencing homelessness. If a student experiencing homelessness will be moving during an intersession period, the student's parent/guardian, educational rights holder, or Indian custodian in the case of an Indian child, or, if there is no parent/guardian, educational rights holder, or Indian custodian, the unaccompanied homeless youth, shall determine which school the student attends for the intersession period. 
 
Resolving Enrollment Disputes
If a dispute arises over student eligibility, school selection, or enrollment in a particular school, the matter shall be referred to the district liaison, who shall carry out the dispute resolution process as expeditiously as possible.
 
The parent/guardian or unaccompanied youth shall be provided with a written explanation of any decisions related to eligibility, school selection, or enrollment and of the right of the parent/guardian or unaccompanied youth to appeal such decisions.
 
The written explanation shall include:
 
  1. A description of the action proposed or refused by the district
     
  2. An explanation of why the action is proposed or refused
     
  3. A description of any other options the district considered and the reasons that any other options were rejected
     
  4. A description of any other factors relevant to the district's decision and information related to the eligibility or best interest determination including the facts, witnesses, and evidence relied upon and their sources
     
  5. Appropriate timelines to ensure any relevant deadlines are not missed
     
  6. Contact information for the district liaison and state coordinator, and a brief description of those roles
The written explanation shall be complete, as brief as possible, simply stated, and provided in language that the parent/guardian or student can understand.
 
The district liaison may use an informal process as an alternative to formal dispute resolution procedures, provided that the parents/guardians or unaccompanied youth have access to the more formal process if informal resolution is not successful in resolving the matter.
 
In working with a student’s parents/guardians or unaccompanied youth to resolve an enrollment dispute, the district liaison shall:
 
  1. Inform the student’s parents/guardians or unaccompanied youth that written and/or oral documentation to support their position may be provided
     
  2. Inform the student’s parents/guardians or unaccompanied youth that they may seek assistance of social services, advocates, and/or service providers in having the dispute resolved
     
  3. Provide a simple form that they may use and turn in to the school to initiate the dispute resolution process
     
  4. Provide a copy of the dispute from they submit for their records
     
  5. Provide the outcome of the dispute for their records
When a student's parent/guardian or an unaccompanied youth involved in the enrollment dispute is an English learner, items #1-5 shall be provided either in the native language of the parent/guardian or unaccompanied youth or through an interpreter. Any additional support needed because of a disability of that parent/guardian or unaccompanied youth shall be made available without a charge.
 
If a parent/guardian or unaccompanied youth disagrees with the liaison’s enrollment decision, the decision may be appealed to the Superintendent.  The Superintendent shall make a determination within five working days.
 
If the parent/guardian chooses to appeal the district's placement decision, the district liaison shall forward all written documentation and related paperwork to the liaison for homeless students at the county office of education.
 
Pending final resolution of the dispute, including all available appeals, the student shall be immediately enrolled in the school in which enrollment is sought and shall be allowed to attend classes and participate fully in school activities.
 
Transportation
The district shall provide transportation for a student experiencing homelessness to and from the student’s school of origin when the student is residing within the district and the parent/guardian, or at the liaison in the case of an unaccompanied youth, requests that such transportation be provided.  If the student moves outside of district boundaries, but continues to attend student’s school of origin within this district, the Superintendent or designee shall consult with the superintendent of the district in which the student is now residing to agree upon a method to apportion the responsibility and cost of the transportation.
 
Any fees that the district charges for home-to-school transportation and other transportation as expressly provided by law shall be waived for students experiencing homelessness. 
 
The district shall not be obligated to provide transportation to students who continue attending their school of origin after they secure permanent housing, unless the formerly homeless student has an IEP that includes transportation as a necessary related service for the student. 
 
Transfer of Coursework and Credits
When a student experiencing homelessness transfers into a district school, the student’s coursework and credits shall be transferred as specified in Education Code 51225.2 and Board Policy and Rule 6146.3- Reciprocity of Academic Credit.
 
Applicability of Graduation Requirements
A student experiencing homelessness who transfers to a district school shall be expected to complete all courses and fulfill graduation requirements as specified in Board Policy 6146.1 - High School Graduation Requirements, unless the student has completed the second year of high school and thereby exempted from such requirements in accordance with Education Code 51225.1.
 
Eligibility for Extracurricular Activities
A student experiencing homelessness who enrolls in any district school shall have access to extracurricular and enrichment activities that are available to all students in the school, included but not limited to, interscholastic sports administered by the California Interscholastic Federation. 
 
Notification and Complaints
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that a list of the district's liaison(s) and the contact information for such liaison(s), as well as specific information on homelessness, including, but not limited to, information regarding the educational rights and resources available to students experiencing homelessness, are posted on the district's website. 
 
Additionally, each district school that has a website shall post the contact information for the district liaison.
 

Legal References

Policy Reference Disclaimer:
These references are not intended to be part of the policy itself, nor do they indicate the basis or authority for the Board to enact this policy.  Instead, they are provided as additional resources for those interested in the subject matter of the policy.

STATE
CALIFORNIA CODE OF REGULATIONS
5 CCR 4600-4670 Uniform complaint procedures
EDUCATION CODE
2558.2 Use of revenue limits to determine average daily attendance of homeless children
39807.5 Payment of transportation costs by parents
48850 Academic achievement of students in foster care and homeless children
48850-48859 Education of foster youth and homeless students
48851 Identification of homeless children and youths and unaccompanied youths; housing questionnaire
48851.3 Homeless education program policies; liaison responsibilities
48851.5 Local educational agency liaison for homeless children and youths
48852.3 Monitoring for compliance with chapter
48852.5 Notice of educational rights of homeless students
48852.6 Information regarding homelessness
48852.7 Education of homeless students; immediate enrollment
48859 Definitions
48915.5 Recommended expulsion; foster youth with disabilities
48918.1 Notice of recommended expulsion
48985 Notices to parents in language other than English
51225.1-51225.3 Graduation requirements
52052 Accountability; numerically significant student subgroups
52060-52077 Local control and accountability plan
FEDERAL
UNITED STATES CODES
20 USC 1087vv Free Application for Federal Student Aid; definitions
20 USC 1232g Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974
20 USC 1400-1482 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
20 USC 6311 State plan
42 USC 11431-11435 McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
42 USC 12705 Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act; state and local strategies
MANAGEMENT RESOURCES
CALIFORNIA CHILD WELFARE COUNCIL PUBLICATION
Partial Credit Model Policy and Practice Recommendations
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PUBLICATION
Federal Program Monitoring Instrument
Homeless Education Dispute Resolution Process, March 2020
NATIONAL CENTER FOR HOMELESS EDUCATION PUBLICATIONS
Homeless Liaison Toolkit, 2020
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GUIDANCE
Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program, Non-Regulatory Guidance, July 2004
WEBSITES
California Department of Education, Homeless Children and Youth Education http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/hs/cy
National Center for Homeless Education at SERVE http://www.serve.org/nche
National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty http://www.nlchp.org