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McKinney Vento Liaisons, Districts, & ESDs

Liaison, District, and ESD Support

The McKinney-Vento Act for the Education of Houseless Children and Youth Program ensures that houseless children and youth are provided a free, appropriate public education, despite the lack of a fixed, regular, nighttime, adequate place of residence. A youth is considered unaccompanied if they are not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. The state public school admission statute assuring the right of houseless and other children and youth in similar circumstances to enroll in schools is Oregon Revised Statute ORS 339.115 (7). Notwithstanding Oregon Revised Statute ORS 339.133 (2)(a), a school district shall not exclude from admission a child located in the district solely because the child does not have a fixed place of residence or solely because the child is not under the supervision of a parent, guardian or person in a parental relationship. 

Each district McKinney-Vento Liaison must: 

  • Collaborate with caseworkers, Resource parents, Tribes, and community partners 
  • Train school staff on their role in supporting students experiencing homelessness; 
  • and Engage with the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) on matters of professional development and technical assistance.

This page is dedicated to supporting districts, liaisons, and ESDs assisting students navigating houselessness. 

McKinney-Vento Contact Lists

The Every Student Succeeds (ESSA) Act requires that all school districts identify a Point of Contact assigned to work with staff and provide assistance for students experiencing houselessness. Each school district must also have a designated liaison tasked with overseeing the coordination and application of these supports. This is done through collaboration with caseworkers and other human services representatives, training staff within their districts on the unique needs of students navigating houselessness, and engaging with community organizations and agencies to ensure that students and families are receiving adequate services under ESSA/ESEA. See ODE's ESSA webpage for more details.

​ODE ​

​The McKinney-Vento support team runs a Contact list generated from the Continuous Improvement Plan (CIP) Budget Narrative (BN) monthly to maintain accuracy to the fullest extent possible. 

​Districts

  • Districts must submit their Program Contacts on the Continuous Improvement Plan Budget Narrative (CIP BN)​ via the Central Login Application on the ODE District Website.
    • It opens for the new school year on August 1st and is DUE by October 1st annually. 
    • Districts can refer to the CIP Budget Narrative Users Guide ​​ for more information.
    • Any updates submitted after the end of a school year and August 1 will not be reflected on the new SY Contacts list report, sourced from the CIP BN.
      • ​​
  • ​​Districts are responsible for updating the contact information as staff changes occur and ensuring assigned Points of Contact / Liaisons are aware of their role. 
  • Please connect with your District Security Administrator (DSA) if your district contact needs to be updated! 
    • ​​​ODE does not update district contacts, however, if you have a secondary contact for a program, you may email us with all header details to add someone.

Support

Office Hours

State McKinney-Vento Point of Contacts are welcome to join us for Office Hours (OH). This forum offers the opportunity to receive updates to share across the district, connect with other districts to learn about their best practices, and ask questions pertaining to the work.


McKinney-Vento Program Office Hours

  • Recurrance: 3rd Thursday of the month;
    • 1:30 - 2:30 pm Pacific Time (PT)
  • MKV OH Zoom Registration is required and attendance is limited to state education contacts
  • Emails that do not belong to a district are subject to removal. Please email us at OR-MV@ode.oregon.gov if you have a question about participation eligibility.

NEW:  McKinney-Vento 'Coordinator's Corner'

  • Recurrance: 3rd Thursday of the month
    • 1:30 - 2:30 pm Pacific Time (PT)
  • Coordinator's Corner Zoom Registration is required
  • This is a space for educators to bring scenarios and/or questions. There is no presentation or agenda that will take place. 

Newsletter

The McKinney-Vento newsletter is sent to subscribers after each Office Hours and includes:

  • Office Hours meeting slide deck
  • Links referenced
  • Q & As (questions and answers) from the meeting
  • Important updates and resources
  • Topic for the following month

To subscribe to this and other ODE newsletter topics, go to the ODE GovDelivery newsletter subscription page. The topic is McKinney-Vento Homeless Education. Click on the plus + sign to expand the selection options.

    • Past newsletters can be found in the archive on the ODE Key Messages webpage by entering 'McKinney' in the search box
Contact Us

McKinney-Vento / Foster Care Program Support Request Form

Due to the high volume of incoming requests for support across the state, we have recently implemented a support and inquiry tracking system to ensure all requests receive a thorough and timely response. We encourage district contacts to complete the McKinney-Vento / Foster Care Program Support Request Form for McKinney-Vento related questions or concerns, such as program qualification, services, district responsibilities, rights of students experiencing homelessness, etc. The form allows districts to provide context and assists in the preparation and prioritization of responses. 


McKinney-Vento Booking Link

Districts can also email requests and schedule a time to connect via the McKinney-Vento Booking Link. 


ODE McKinney-Vento Team

Liaison, District, and ESD Resources


​District McKinney-Vento Dispute Resolution Protocols

​

The federal McKinney-Vento (MV) Education of Homeless Children and Youth program requires states to ensure equal access to public schools by homeless students and other educational support. Among the provisions is the right of homeless parents and unaccompanied homeless youths to dispute district determinations of school placement and McKinney-Vento eligibility.

This brief below  provides guidance for Oregon school districts regarding procedures and protocols for dispute resolution and appeals, in compliance with the McKinney-Vento Act’s Education of Homeless Children and Youth program, as reauthorized in 2015 under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

2015 Reauthorization Changes to McKinney-Vento Provisions
The 2015 MV reauthorization resulted in codifying several items previously found in non-regulatory guidance. One such change occurred in the determination of a student’s best interest:
  • Previous McKinney-Vento provision: In determining the best interest of an eligible child or youth, the district shall, to the extent feasible, keep the student in their school of origin.
  • New under McKinney-Vento: ​In determining the best interest of an eligible child or youth, the district shall presume that keeping the student in the school of origin is in their best interest, except when doing so is contrary to the request of the parent or unaccompanied student.
    ​
    ​In addition to the presumption clause, MV directs districts to consider student-centered factors related to the child or youth’s best interest, including factors related to “the impact of mobility on achievement, education, health and safety” of homeless students, giving priority to the request of the parent or unaccompanied youth.

    Also new in the Act is the provision that the receiving or feeder schools are included in the definition of “school of origin.” The same criteria for best educational interest determinations apply to feeder schools. A review of a student’s best educational interest is appropriate whenever a school change is about to occur.​​​​​
Refer to the ODE District Procedures and Compliance Brief for further information and instruction.

​

​What is the American Rescue Plan?

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) into law. In recognition of the extraordinary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on students experiencing houselessness, the ARP included an unprecedented $800 million to support the specific needs of houseless children and youth via the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief - Houseless Children and Youth (ARP-HCY) Fund. 

ARP-HCY I & II Reimbursement Process

In order to have claims approved in the Electronic Grant Management System (EGMS), districts must complete a reimbursement request form with each of their items listed and attached to an object and function code. This reimbursement form mirrors the McKinney-Vento Subgrant, ESSER and 21st Century grant processes, so we hope this will be a familiar process for all business managers and fiscal staff. 
The form includes instructions and District staff can schedule 1:1 with ODE staff using this Bookings Page for Technical Assistance. Once complete, districts can send the form to the ODE.ARP.HCY@ode.oregon.gov​ inbox. If you have any other questions about ARP-HCY I & II, please do not hesitate to reach out. 

​There are 12 McKinney-Vento Subgrantees who received federal funds to support youth navigating houselessness for the 2019-2022 and 2023-2025 grant cycles. 

McKinney-Vento Subgrant Reimbursement Process

In order to have claims approved in the Electronic Grant Management System (EGMS), districts must complete a reimbursement request form​ with each of their items listed and attached to an object and function code.

Once complete, districts can send the form to the OR-MV@ode.oregon.gov inbox. If you have any other questions about McKinney-Vento Subgrants, please do not hesitate to reach out. 


Federal and state laws for guidance on the McKinney-Vento Act, Education for Homeless Children & Youth Program:

​ODE | Dept of Early Learning and Care (DELC) - Supports for Early Learners Experiencing Housing Instability 
​ODE American Indian Alaskan Native (AI/AN) Education & the McKinney-Vento Program
ODE | OHA Immunizations

​These links apply to pregnant youth, rural communities, youth with disab​ilities,​​ native youth, tr​auma-informed practices, and family engagement.

  • National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN)​ 
    Created by Congress in 2000 as part of the Children's Health Act to raise the standard of care and increase access to services for children and families who experience or witness traumatic events. This unique network of frontline providers, family members, researchers, and national partners is committed to changing the course of children's lives by improving their care and moving scientific gains quickly into practice across the U.S. ​

    The NCTSN is administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)​ and coordinated by the UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress (NCCTS)​. ​

  • ​Native Child Advocacy Resource Center​ ​
    The Native Child Advocacy Resource Center is a division of the National Native Children's Trauma Center (NNCTC), a specialty unit within the College of Education at the University of Montana.​

    ​The center has been collaborating with tribal communities and AI/AN populations since 2006, working across all child-serving systems (child welfare, juvenile justice, education, mentatl health, and primary care, among others) to support the development of culturally focused, trauma-informed programming that benefits children, families, communities, and tribes.​