McKinney-Vento Act
• Reauthorizes the McKinney Act originally enacted
in 1987.
• Requires educational access, attendance, and success for children and youth experiencing homelessness.
• Provides states with funding to support local grants and statewide initiatives.
Note that the law was originally crafted due to the large number of homeless children and youth who were not receiving an education. Participants can be directed to locate the timeline for the legislation found in Chapter 2, Figure 1.

You may note that the role of state coordinator for homeless education is a result of this legislation. Be sure participants have the appropriate contact information for their state coordinator.

The 2001 reauthorization required that a local homeless education liaison be present in all school districts. (This new requirement led to the development of the Toolkit and training materials.) This individual has the responsibility to ensure homeless children and youth have access to the educational system and receive the needed support to attend regularly and succeed in school.

A copy of the reauthorized legislation can be found in Appendix A of
the Toolkit.