Superintendent: McKinney‑Vento placements have pushed Hanover Township schools toward hundreds of thousands in unbudgeted costs

Superintendent Justin Toomey told the Hanover Township Board of Education that a recent increase in homelessness placements has created immediate enrollment and transportation obligations under the federal McKinney‑Vento Act that the district is obliged to meet, even when standard enrollment paperwork is not available. "Every district is required to have a homeless liaison," Toomey said, and noted the district added a McKinney‑Vento screening form to its registration process.

The presentation described four McKinney‑Vento categories — sheltered, unsheltered, hotel/motel and "doubled up" — and explained that districts must "immediately enroll the homeless child or youth even if the child or youth is unable to produce records normally required for enrollment." Toomey said the district's liaison, Sherry Copen, follows up with families to determine eligibility and to coordinate supports.

Copen told the board the district has identified 19 students who could transfer into Hanover Township under the 365‑day district‑of‑origin rule and said the district currently has 10 in‑district general‑education students, four students in resource‑level special education, two in self‑contained classrooms and 14 students being transported because of displacement. "These are not hypothetical numbers in any way," Copen said.

Toomey and Copen presented the district's cost calculations: an in‑district total of $557,357.92 and a combined total, including out‑of‑district tuition and transportation for parent‑choice placements and special‑needs students, the presenters said, that "exceeds over $700,000." Toomey and board members discussed per‑pupil cost figures around $24,000 and said transportation for dispersed placements can run an hour each way.

Board members pressed on funding options and constraints. A board member noted the district is limited by a 2% tax‑levy cap; another board member said a roughly $30–34 million district budget would yield about $600,000 of additional levy capacity under the cap, an amount that earlier had been consumed by increases in employee insurance. "If the voters voted down (an increase), guess what? You still have to pay for this because this is…a federal law," one board speaker said.

Toomey and other administrators said the district is pursuing revenue offsets — including enrolling in the National School Lunch Program, revising facilities‑use fees and aggressively seeking grants — while working with municipal and county partners on placements and transportation. They warned, however, that if additional displaced students arrive during the year the district may need to consider cost‑saving measures such as pay‑to‑play fees for extracurriculars, changing busing distance rules or reductions in noninstructional staff.

The presentation concluded with an appeal for transparency and for continued coordination with municipal and state partners. Toomey said the administration will continue to update the board on counts, costs and any policy or budget recommendations.