Foster Youth and Homeless Education Services AB490/AB167
Foster Youth and Homeless Education Services (FYS/HES) provides services to children and youth in foster care and homeless situations. Services are designed to address their vital educational needs. FYS provides assistance and training to school districts and community stakeholders regarding the various educational laws that protect the rights of both foster and homeless youth. FYS/HES staff also works with group home providers, Juvenile Justice Department and the Department of Family and Children Services along with other agencies and organizations involved in the lives of foster and homeless youth.
McKinney-Vento Act
According to the McKinney-Vento Act, children and youth through age 17 who are living apart from their parents or guardians, are considered "Unaccompanied." The Act states, a child or youth “not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian.” This means a child or youth has the right to immediate enrollment in school, without the consent of a parent or guardian. A student who is considered homeless (lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence) and unaccompanied (not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian) can be registered as an unaccompanied homeless youth under the McKinney-Vento Act.
A student who is not homeless, even though residing with a person other than the parent or court appointed guardian, does not qualify as an unaccompanied homeless youth under the McKinney-Vento Act.
