District outlines McKinney-Vento services, reports rising identifications and limited staff

Superintendent Michael Beatty presented an extended briefing on the district—s homelessness work and McKinney-Vento responsibilities, telling the Detroit Public Schools Community District board the office is identifying more students but remains small-staffed.

Beatty reviewed the federal McKinney-Vento Act definition of homelessness and said the district must keep identified students in their school of origin when possible and provide transportation to maintain enrollment. He described common eligibility scenarios that can qualify students for McKinney-Vento services (doubling up due to loss of housing, motels/hotels, shelters, living in vehicles, tents, abandoned buildings or other inadequate housing) and noted the district must perform eligibility reviews when referrals are submitted.

The superintendent said the homelessness office has two full-time staff and two contracted staff who manage referrals, transportation arrangements (often using vetted taxi or contracted services when yellow buses or city transit are not feasible), school supplies, uniforms and connections to community shelters and services. He identified Michelle Parker as the district homeless liaison and noted the office engages with health hubs and pantry distribution to meet basic needs.

Beatty reported district figures during the meeting: he referenced roughly 218 unaccompanied youth identified and about 3,207 students districtwide defined as experiencing homelessness (numbers reported by the superintendent during the presentation). He said those counts represent progress compared with several years earlier and acknowledged the work increases cost pressures primarily in transportation. He told the board the district aims to respond to referrals within 24-to-48 hours and that an intake and referral form is available online.

The board and staff discussed recent flooding in Southwest Detroit; Beatty said district staff coordinated with the city and hotels to support affected families and pledged continued outreach. Board members urged bilingual outreach, clarification on uniform leniency and access to laundry services for displaced families. Beatty said by next year all district schools would have washers and dryers installed and that the district would circulate bilingual messages about available supports and temporary uniform flexibility where appropriate.

Beatty closed by providing the pantry address, 4701 McKinley Street, Detroit 48208, and thanking the homeless office staff and partners for the work of identification, enrollment and family supports.