Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Families In Transition topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Chandler Unified families-in-transition advocate details enrollment, basic-needs and transportation supports
Summary
The district’s Families in Transition and related advocates described McKinney‑Vento services, foster‑care tracking, basic‑needs assistance and transportation arrangements for students experiencing homelessness, unaccompanied youth, refugees and foster care.
Val Jerry, the Families in Transition advocate and academic coach at Chandler Unified School District, outlined services for students experiencing housing instability, unaccompanied youth, immigrant and refugee students and foster-care students.
Jerry said the district ensures immediate enrollment to avoid student loss and works to remove barriers to participation by providing transportation, clothing, backpacks, class‑fee support and in‑school vision screenings. “My first and foremost position is to work with sites and make sure that we are immediately enrolling any student so that we don't lose a student within our boundaries,” Jerry said.
She described steady community partnerships and donations: the district supplied 6,000 pairs of underwear through a City Serve partnership, received 400 backpacks donated by a team from Texas, helped 300 families with Christmas assistance this year and provided food support to an additional 75 families for holiday breaks. Jerry also said the office helps students with items tied to career and technical education—such as stethoscopes or white shoes—when grants don’t cover those costs.
On transportation, officials said federal law requires districts to help maintain consistent education for children experiencing homelessness. Jerry described coordination with neighboring districts—“a gentleman’s agreement” to split transportation duties when students move across district lines—and said staff provide bus passes, gas cards, Chandler Flex rides and, in some cases, contracted services such as EverDriven when bus capacity is limited.
Jerry said she handles best‑interest determinations for foster‑care students and serves as the local point of contact for the state to ensure compliance and credit tracking. She also said the program aims to ensure older students develop post‑secondary plans and that the office works closely with school social workers and counselors.
Board members asked about practical limits and alternatives; Jerry said the district does not have latitude to deny services based on distance and that staff seek practical options with families and other districts to reduce transportation burdens while preserving educational continuity.
The presentation emphasized community partnerships and that staff coordinate academic supports with social services to address students’ whole‑child needs.
