New York State Education Department Awards $5.1 Million in Federal Grants to Programs Supporting Homeless Students

Funding Will Support Approximately 153,000 Students Across New York State

The New York State Education Department (NYSED) awarded more than $5 million in grants authorized by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Act, a component of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia announced today. NYSED awarded grants to 48 districts across the state to promote school success for students in temporary housing with 12 of those districts to also receive an additional grant with an emphasis on trauma sensitivity.

“Homeless children are some of our most vulnerable; however, with the proper support system in place, we can ensure they are on a path for success,” Board of Regents Chancellor Betty A. Rosa said. “With these grants, school districts will be able to provide enrichment activities and services beyond academics -- such as counseling, tutoring and transportation – so they are better able to focus on learning.”

“Through the implementation of our ESSA plan, we are increasing equity in education for all students, including those in temporary housing,” Commissioner Elia said. “Times of transition can be extremely challenging for students. The programs and services these grants will provide can help ease the burden of a tumultuous time and help students succeed in school.”

The Baseline Grant Program award amounts are dependent upon the three-year average number of students in temporary housing identified for each Local Education Agency (LEA). The awards range from $45,000 for districts serving 100-200 students in temporary housing to $2.5 million for districts serving more than 50,000 students identified to be in temporary housing. Upon successful awards of baseline grants, LEAs were invited to apply for an additional $20,000 per year through the Enhanced Grant for Trauma Sensitive Schools program, intended to support LEAs in their efforts to take deliberate steps toward creating and implementing trauma-sensitive programs. The grant period for both grants will be July 1, 2019 – June 30, 2022. Funding for Years 2 and 3 will be awarded at the same level as Year 1.

Each winning application demonstrated a well-developed project that may have included but was not limited to the following; facilitates mentoring or tutoring programs, coordination of counseling services, family support programming, professional development, transportation to and from extracurricular activities, preschool outreach, weekend food programs, and physical improvements to shelter or school space to create a safe and supportive educational environment.

Activities and services provided with McKinney-Vento funds must facilitate the improved attendance, engagement, and academic success of students in temporary housing. Applicants developed plans to address a student’s social-emotional needs, academic needs, and physical and mental health needs in the proposals they submitted for their McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Program.

A full list of grant awards is below:

Applicant Name	Baseline Grant Amount	Enhanced Grant for Trauma Sensitive Schools
Albany CSD	$65,000
Amityville CSD	$55,000
Amsterdam School District	$45,000
Auburn CSD	$45,000
Ballston Spa CSD	$45,000	$20,000
Cohoes CSD	$45,000
Eastern Suffolk BOCES – Brentwood	$80,000
Eastern Suffolk BOCES – Central Suffolk Regional	$65,000
Eastern Suffolk BOCES – East End (Riverhead)	$65,000
Eastern Suffolk BOCES – Esperanza	$65,000
Eastern Suffolk BOCES – South Shore	$80,000
Eastern Suffolk BOCES – William Floyd	$80,000
Fallsburg CSD	$45,000
Freeport CSD	$45,000
Fulton CSD	$55,000
Geneva CSD	$45,000	$20,000
Gorham-Middlesex CSD	$45,000
Greece CSD	$45,000	$20,000
Huntington UFSD	$45,000
Lockport CSD	$45,000
Middletown CSD	$65,000
Monticello CSD	$45,000
New Rochelle	$45,000	$20,000
Newark CSD	$45,000	$20,000
Newburgh CSD	$80,000	$20,000
North Rose Wolcott CSD	$45,000	$20,000
NYC	$2,500,000
Orange-Ulster BOCES	$65,000
Oswego CSD	$55,000
Port Chester-Rye CSD	$45,000
Rochester CSD	$125,000
Rome CSD	$45,000	$20,000
Saratoga Springs CSD	$45,000	$20,000
Schenectady CSD	$55,000
St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES #1 Clifton-Fine CS Hermon-DeKalb CS Lisbon CS Madrid-Waddington CS	$45,000
St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES #2 Harrisville CS Morristown CS Ogdensburg CS Potsdam CS	$45,000
St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES #3 Brasher Falls CS Canton CS Edwards-Knox CS	$45,000
St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES #4 Hammond CS Massena CS Norwood-Norfolk CS	$45,000
St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES #5 Colton-Pierrepont CS Gouverneur CS Heuvelton CS Parishville-Hopkinton	$45,000
South Country	$55,000
Southern Westchester BOCES	$65,000
Syracuse CSD	$125,000	$20,000
Troy CSD	$65,000	$20,000
Ulster BOCES	$65,000
Utica CSD	$45,000
Valley Central CSD	$45,000
Westbury UFSD	$45,000
White Plains CSD	$55,000	$20,000
Total	$5,155,000	$240,000

ESSA is Equity

The final approved ESSA plan emphasizes fostering equity in education for New York’s students; expands measures for school support and accountability and student success; and requires school-level improvement plans for the lowest performing schools overall, as well as schools with the lowest performance for certain student populations.

New York State is committed to ensuring that all students succeed and thrive in school no matter who they are, where they live, where they go to school, or where they come from. The plan includes strategies for supporting the professional growth of educators and ensuring that all students, including Multilingual learners/English language learners, immigrant students, migratory youth, students with disabilities, homeless youth, and neglected and delinquent youth, have access to a well-rounded, culturally responsive and sustaining education that supports students’ academic and social-emotional development.

ESSA strategies to foster equity include to: address disparities in training for teachers to help them be effective in the classroom; provide students more access to rigorous high school coursework; make schools equally welcoming environments for all students; increase fiscal transparency in school building spending; and use multiple measures to allow students to demonstrate proficiency in state learning standards.