Are you Homeless? -- a must read for parents

Not too long ago I attended a meeting between Community Action and Habitat for Humanity. The two groups are joining together to do a rehab project where that they will purchase homes that have been foreclosed on, refurbish them, and offer them up for sale again.

In the course of the meeting, it was revealed that Logan County has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the state of Illinois.

For the month of June this year, Habitat identified 15 homes that would go through foreclosure and be candidates for this new program.

I have mixed emotions about the program because I believe that instead of making the homes new again, and selling them, Habitat and Community Action should be trying to figure out how to keep the original owners in the homes, but that is not the true purpose of this article, so I'll get to it.

America on the whole is facing a rough economy. Young families pursuing the great American dream of home ownership, entered into agreements that now they find themselves hard pressed to fulfill.

I sympathize with these families, who are trying so hard to make a good life for their children, and have found themselves in some really bad situations.

As foreclosures rise, families are left homeless. They may have some alternatives that include low income housing through HUD, or they may be able to afford rent on a home that is perhaps not the one they would really like to raise their family in, but none-the-less it is a roof over their heads.

Some may find that they have to take temporary residence in a motel while they re-organize their lives and try to figure out how to get back on their feet.

And, there are some who are going to find themselves in a position of calling on family for help, specifically, merging their house hold with that of a parent, or sibling.

According to the McKinney-Vento Act which was first established in 1987, and reauthorized as part of the No Child Left Behind act of 2002, children who live in motels and those who are in merged families qualify as homeless.

However, especially in the case of moving in with grand parents, if is often overlooked as a homeless situation, simply because the family is more stable than they were previously.

However, as these struggling families work to get back on their feet, they need to be aware that there is assistance available to them through the public school districts under the McKinney-Vento Act.

Today I have an article in the Lincoln Daily news, part two of a 4 part series, based on a very in depth interview with the Logan-Mason-Menard Regional Superintendent of Schools. Part one ran yesterday and parts three and four are schedule to run tomorrow.

While the stories focus on this tri-county district, there is information included that applies to all school districts throughout the State of Illinois, and I would encourage every parent to read the articles so that they might better understand the processes of education.

I am emphasizing the article that is running today, because I feel strongly that when a family is trying to rebuild their lives, they should be exposed to every form of help that is available to them.

The section in today's article explains the liaison, and talks about what is available to assist families.

Additionally, when a family is in this kind of transition, it is important that teachers are aware of it. Children are going to be feeling some anxiety during this transition, which may cause them to shut down, or act out. Teachers need to know that there is an underlying cause, so that they can act accordingly.

Hopefully, you'll read the articles, and pass them along to anyone whom you think might need a better understanding of homelessness, and other issues affecting our schools, and our children.

Today's article: http://www.lincolndailynews.com/News/today052209_roe38b.shtml

Thursday's article:http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2009/May/21/News/today052109_roe38.shtml