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The number of New York City students experiencing homelessness grew to more than 146,000 last school year, an increase of 26,000 students, according to a new analysis.
That meant roughly one in eight students in the nation’s largest public school system were living in temporary housing during the 2023-24 school year, a record high, according to a Monday report by Advocates for Children, which has been tracking the number for more than a decade.
New York City has long struggled to address its housing crisis, with the number of students in shelters, living “doubled up” with friends or relatives, or otherwise without permanent housing eclipsing 100,000 for each of the past nine years. The current high comes in part due to the thousands of asylum-seeking and other migrant families that have come to the city in recent years.
Students experiencing homelessness can face significant challenges at school. Just showing up can be a hurdle: Students in shelters are disproportionately impacted by transportation issues, with 40% of students attending school in a different borough from their shelter placement, according to Jennifer Pringle, director of the Learners in Temporary Housing Project at Advocates for Children.
In the 2022-23 school year, half of all students living in temporary housing — including 67% of students living in shelters — were chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 18 days of school, according to the Advocates for Children analysis. For students in permanent housing, just 34% were chronically absent that year.
The share of students in temporary housing scoring proficient on state English and math exams was more than 20 percentage points lower than their peers. Students in temporary housing were also more likely to face suspensions or transfer schools. And students in shelters dropped out of high school at a rate three times higher than those in permanent housing.
The compounding obstacles can place additional strain on students and schools, Pringle said.
“Schools that have a large number of students in temporary housing have a lot of churn within their student population, and that means it takes that much more operational work and personnel to adjust,” she said. “You think about getting to know your students, getting to know what their needs are, and adapting your classroom practice to meet those needs — but what if your classroom composition is constantly changing? It takes time and effort to have a nimble response.”
Schools need additional staff and resources to adequately support students who are experiencing homelessness, from academic intervention and tutoring, to family outreach and engagement, to partnering with community organizations to provide wraparound support at school, Pringle said.
She suggested other ways the city can better support its students in temporary housing, including ending a requirement that families in some shelters exit the system every 60 days and either find alternative housing or re-apply for shelter, as well as hiring more staff to support students in shelters.
The city currently employs 107 school-based community coordinators who work with students in temporary housing, as well as 160 shelter-based community coordinators, according to Education Department officials.
Education Department spokesperson Chyann Tull said the city remained committed to supporting students in temporary housing through field and enrollment support, transportation services, counseling, immunization assistance, and academic support.
“Our students who are experiencing homelessness are among our most vulnerable,” she said in a statement. “We are also proud to provide attendance supports strategies that allow districts and schools to provide families with access to food, clothing, hygiene supplies, and health services.”
Tull added the city had updated its school funding formula last year to send additional funds to schools serving students in temporary housing.
Advocates call for more support for homeless students
Among the students living in temporary housing, 54% were doubled up, or temporarily sharing the housing of others, while 41% spent time in the city’s shelters. The number of students experiencing homelessness rose in every school district across the five boroughs.
Students experiencing homelessness were especially concentrated in upper Manhattan, southwest Bronx, and parts of northeast and central Brooklyn, a trend in line with prior school years, according to Advocate for Children’s analysis.
In the Bronx and Manhattan, nearly one in six students did not have a permanent home.
Advocates have called for further support for students living in temporary housing, particularly as the state reworks its nearly two-decades-old school funding formula.
That formula, known as Foundation Aid, was implemented in 2007, and sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools. As part of a state budget agreement earlier this year, the Rockefeller Institute is currently conducting a study on how to revise the formula and will issue recommendations by Dec. 1.
Many education experts, politicians, and advocates agree that the formula is no longer a sufficient measure of student need. In September, a coalition of more than 100 New York organizations, including Advocates for Children, urged the state to overhaul Foundation Aid.
“Student homelessness has skyrocketed over the past decade, but right now, districts receive no additional per-pupil funding from the State to help meet the educational needs of students in temporary housing,” said Kim Sweet, executive director of Advocates for Children, in a statement.
And as the number of New York City students experiencing homelessness could continue to grow, Pringle said it’s critical that education remains a focus.
“Education needs to be part of the conversation about solving family homelessness,” she said. “Young adults who don’t have a high school diploma are four and a half times more likely to experience homelessness.”
Tackling the education challenges students currently living in shelters face is crucial in breaking the cycle to help prevent them from experiencing homelessness as adults, Pringle said.
“We need to make sure that they are getting educational support and services now,” she said. “So that they can thrive in school, get their high school diploma and more, and be successful, independent adults.”
Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.
