A mother identified as K.L. is suing a school district, alleging officials forced her children to switch schools while they experienced homelessness. The mother claims in a 17-page lawsuit that Gaston County Schools, Lisa Phillips, state coordinator for Education of Homeless Children, and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction failed her children.
K.L. says these institutions failed her kids by forcing them to leave their schools while facing the trauma of homelessness. With nowhere to go, the mother and her children switched to car riders while searching for steady housing.
The lawsuit filed on January 26, 2024, states that K.L. was evicted from her residence in September 2023. Her children were students of New Hope Elementary and Cramerton Middle School. Although the family remained in the city, they were not in the same school zone since the eviction.
K.L. claims in the suit that she tried to meet with Gaston County district officials and school social workers while she found affordable housing. However, she was denied. The disabled 51-year-old veteran mother stated that Gaston County Schools “just didn’t believe her.”
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She alleges that the school is violating the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. The Act is a federal law that states a homeless child’s family may choose whether the child will attend the school where the family or child lived before being homeless or where they currently live.
However, a school social worker told the mother that her homelessness was voluntary because she had reached an agreement with her landlord after an eviction notice. The worker said the McKinney-Vento Act does not acknowledge “voluntary homelessness.”
According to reports, K.L. negotiated a move-out day of October 10, 2023, with her landlord after receiving an eviction notice in September 2023. However, she and the children left the residence on October 18, 2023.
“Homeless children are being turned away at the schoolhouse door mid-year, significantly impacting their educational growth,” K.L. claimed. She added that since the judge may not quickly address the preliminary injunction filing, she has to homeschool the children.
“It’s not going well,” she reported in an interview. McKinney-Vento demands officials review and revise policies or practices that bar homeless children from enrollment, attendance, or success. Kathy Gauger, executive director at Catherine’s House in Belmont, says she often sees women and children in similar situations.
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At the nonprofit facility she heads, up to 15 families can stay for about six months. Gauger says they can do this while finding safe, permanent, affordable housing. Referencing the federal homeless assistance act, Gauger said, “Many of our kids are receiving McKinney Vento transportation.”
“So, they’re coming from a school that is not within our catchment area because that’s what’s best for our kids,” she added. Furthermore, Gauger noted that moving students in the middle of a school year could impact them academically and psychologically.
“It can lead to an increase in behavioral problems within the school system,” Gauger said. “It can lead to poor outcomes academically and also lead to the children repeating grades,” she added. “This would leave them without the friend group that they were with.”
She further noted the negative impact of the school’s actions. “This can result in unfortunate health outcomes and mental health outcomes,” Gauger said. “The trauma of losing your roof over your head is one thing. But losing the classroom you’re comfortable with, the teachers you’re comfortable with, and the friends you’re comfortable with can be traumatic too.”
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