3.8 Intakes Involving Unaccompanied Homeless Youth

Georgia State Seal

Georgia Division of Family and Children Services
Child Welfare Policy Manual

Chapter:

(3) Intake

Policy Title:

Intakes Involving Unaccompanied Homeless Youth

Policy Number:

3.8

Previous Policy Number(s):

3.10, 4.1, 4.3

Effective Date:

December 2021

Manual Transmittal:

2021-06

Codes/References

McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 2002, Section 106 (b)(2)(F)

Requirements

The Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) will:

  1. Receive intake reports of alleged child maltreatment involving unaccompanied homeless youth.

  2. Screen-in and assign to Initial Safety Assessment (ISA) an Intake Assessment that identifies the youth to be an unaccompanied homeless youth.

  3. When it is determined that the allegations in the IA involving a homeless youth does not rise to the level of maltreatment, screen-out and refer to the appropriate services including the public school system’s McKinney-Vento liaison in order to ensure the youth’s educational needs are assessed and addressed.

Procedures

CPS Intake Communications Center Social Services Case Manager

  1. Receive the intake report as indicated in section 3.1 Intake: Receiving Intake Reports.

  2. In addition to the areas of family functioning, collect the following information when the intake report involves an unaccompanied homeless youth:

    1. What is the reason for the homelessness?

    2. Does the youth have access to parental care and supervision?

    3. Location of caregiver(s) and attempts to engage caregiver(s) in their parental responsibilities.

    4. Youth’s current access to services including health care and education.

    5. Who are other persons that may be providing support to the youth?

    6. How long has the youth been without parental care and supervision?

    7. Have the caregivers been engaged looking for the child?

    8. Does the youth have any emotional, psychological/psychiatric, or cognitive limitations?

    9. Does the youth have a history of trauma that has impacted family relationships?

    10. Are there any substance abuse issues involving the youth?

  3. Screen case participants according to policy 19.9 Case Management: Safety Screenings.

  4. Assess all information gathered to make an intake decision according to policy 3.2 Intake: Make an Intake Decision. Screen in and assign to the Initial Safety Assessment when the IA determines:

    1. The youth to be unaccompanied homeless; or

    2. A youth has been identified as homeless and is determined not to be unaccompanied (has appropriate care and supervision) and allegations meet DFCS policy requirements concerning child abuse and/or neglect and no present danger situation or Impending Danger safety threats are indicated.

  5. Recommend the Intake Assessment for screen-out and refer when it is determined the youth has appropriate parental care and supervision and the allegations does not rise to the level of maltreatment. Refer to the appropriate services including the public school system’s McKinney-Vento liaison in order to ensure the youth’s educational needs are assessed and addressed (see policy 19.17 Case Management: Service Provision).

Social Services Supervisor

  1. Evaluate and make an approval decision on the Intake Assessment as outlined in policy 3.2 Intake: Make an Intake Decision.

  2. Stage progress the Intake Assessment to the ISA stage in Georgia SHINES.

  3. Assign to the County Department.

Practice Guidance

Unaccompanied homeless youth Includes youth not living in the physical custody of his/her parent or guardian and who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This includes youth awaiting foster care placement who meets the requirements of McKinney-Vento. Unaccompanied homeless youth often face unique barriers to enrolling and succeeding in school. Without a caregiver to advocate for them and exercise parental rights, they are sometimes denied enrollment and remain out of school for extended periods of time. Unaccompanied youth may not understand their educational rights or know how to acquire this information.

According to McKinney-Vento the term homeless children and youths means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence and includes:

  1. Children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement.

  2. Children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

  3. Children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings.

  4. Migratory children who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in (1) through (3) above.

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act[1] section 106 (b)(2)(F) ensures educational rights and protections for homeless children that includes school stability and transportation. The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) require that the needs of homeless children be addressed. Unaccompanied youth have the same rights as other students experiencing homelessness. They specifically have the right to:

  1. Remain in their school of origin to the extent feasible.

  2. Transportation to and from the school of origin.

  3. Immediately enroll in a new school serving the area in which they are currently living even if they don’t have typically required documents.

  4. Equal access to programs and services such as gifted and talented education, special education, vocational education.

When a child is eligible for school stability and transportation under the McKinney- Vento Homeless Act of 2002, County Department staff will contact the DFCS Educational Programming, Assessment and Consultation Unit (EPAC) at EPAC@dhs.ga.gov (see policy 3.2 Intake: Making an Intake Decision).

Forms and Tools

N/A

1. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act is the primary piece of federal legislation dealing with the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness. It was reauthorized as Title X, Part C, of the No Child Left Behind Act, which went into effect in January 2002.