MV FAFSA Round UP (Financial Aid Resources for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth)
Welcome to THEO’s newest tool to support schools and students!
The McKinney-Vento – Free Application for Federal Student Aid (MV-FAFSA) Round-Up Week toolkit is designed to provide high school counselors and school district homeless liaisons with everything they need to:
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Identify “homeless” seniors in their schools and districts, and
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Help ensure that ALL eligible students complete the FAFSA as unaccompanied homeless youth and receive financial aid for college.
Who are unaccompanied homeless youth?
Unaccompanied youth are young people experiencing homelessness and not in the physical custody of a parent or legal guardian. Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Title X, Part C of the No Child Left Behind Act) defines homeless youth to include any child or youth who lacks a “fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence”, such those who are:
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Sharing the housing of others due to loss of housing, economic hardship or a similar reason (including running away from their home or being forced to leave home);
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In shelters and transitional housing programs;
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Staying in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, campgrounds and public spaces; or
- Living in motels.
Each year, between 1.5 and 1.6 million youth run away from home or are forced out of their homes by their parents. Studies show that unaccompanied homeless youth tend to have histories of being abused physically and/or sexually at home and severe family dysfunction.
For more information about the definition of homeless and how school counselors can help identify homeless youth, consult the McKinney-Vento Identification Checklist for School Counselors by clicking on the following links:
McKinney-Vento Identification Checklist for School Counselors, Word format
McKinney-Vento Identification Checklist for School Counselors, pdf format
What does the FAFSA say about homeless students?
Unaccompanied homeless youth can complete the FAFSA as independent students, meaning they are not required to provide a parental signature or parental financial information. The student’s status as an unaccompanied homeless youth must be verified by a McKinney-Vento homeless liaison, director of a HUD (Housing and Urban Development) shelter, or director of a RHYA (Runaway and Homeless Youth Act) program.
On the 2011-2012 FAFSA, Questions 55-57 ask about homelessness and must be answered appropriately for homeless students. For more information, consult the McKinney-Vento FAFSA Tip Sheet for School Counselors by clicking on the following links:
What is MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week?
High school counselors are critical members of our team to ensure that all eligible students complete the FAFSA as unaccompanied homeless youth. MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week is an opportunity for counselors to reach out to homeless youth in their schools.
1. At the outset of the Week, school counselors will provide all seniors with information about the definition of unaccompanied homeless youth and how it affects the FAFSA.
2. Then, seniors who feel they may meet the definition can choose to approach their school counselor to discuss their living situation, determine if they qualify as unaccompanied homeless youth, and request assistance and support with the FAFSA and other needs.
3. Finally, school counselors will assist youth with the FAFSA and connect them to additional resources and assistance.
Any high school can implement its own MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week with a minimal time investment. Each school can determine its own timing for the Week, depending on the school calendar. No funding is required to implement MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week.
How can I make time for this with my other responsibilities?
THEO has developed templates of all the materials you will need to launch your MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week. These materials should allow school counselors or homeless liaisons to hold a MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week with a minimal time commitment and to incorporate it into other financial aid or college access activities.
The specific time commitment will depend on how many seniors are experiencing homelessness in your school and decide to reveal their situation to the counselor.
How can I launch a MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week in my school?
1. Choose an appropriate week for the event when both seniors and the school counselor will be able to participate fully, depending on your school calendar. If you have other financial aid or college access activities planned, you may want to combine MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week with those.
2. Announce the MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week in the school newspaper, webpage, morning and/or afternoon announcements, billboard, school message boards, social media, and other available means of dissemination and publication. Click on the following links to see the sample announcement we have developed:
3. Put up MV posters in the school, if they are not present already. Posters are available free of charge -- send an email to Janie Phillips with the quantity you would like and the physical address where you would like to have them delivered. You may preview the posters at: http://www.utdanacenter.org/theo/resources/posters.php.
4. Provide all seniors with a letter explaining MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week. The letter can be disseminated in homeroom classes or any required senior class, such as English. The letter should provide information about the definitions of homeless, unaccompanied, and independent student. Click on the following links to see the sample letter we have developed for seniors:
5. Ask teachers to reinforce the information in the letter orally when they pass it out to students. Click on the following links to see a sample script outline for teachers:
6. During MV-FAFSA Round-Up Week, make yourself available at times and in ways that allow students to visit you privately, without their peers noticing. Many youth are profoundly embarrassed about their homeless situation and will not reveal it unless they are assured privacy and confidentiality.
Some ways to make it easier for youth to talk to you include:
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Establish a MV-FAFSA email address where students can contact you privately about their situation.
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Hold office hours before or after school
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Allow students to leave notes outside your office or with teachers or administrators, and contact those students privately.
- Click on one of the following links to consult the sample talking points developed by THEO:
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Inform students of your obligations as a mandated reporter at the outset of the conversation.
7. Based on the information you receive from youth, ensure that eligible students check “yes” to the appropriate question on the FAFSA related to homelessness. Most of the unaccompanied, homeless youth identified in schools will need to check yes to Question 55: “At any time on or after July 1, 2010, did your high school or school district homeless liaison determine that you were an unaccompanied youth who was homeless?”
8. Work with the school district homeless liaison to provide eligible students with a letter verifying their homeless status. The letter must be on school district letterhead and signed by the school district homeless liaison. The National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY) has developed a sample verification letter that you can download at:
http://www.naehcy.org/dl/uy_fafsa_verif_11.doc.
9. For more detailed information about unaccompanied, homeless youth and the FAFSA, visit http://www.naehcy.org/higher_ed.html.
What do I do if students come to me to talk about their living situation, but they are not seniors or are not interested in completing the FAFSA?
The McKinney-Vento Act (Title X, Part C of the No Child Left Behind Act) provides many educational rights and services for children and youth experiencing homelessness. You should contact the McKinney-Vento school district liaison about any students who may be homeless. The liaison can help determine what services the youth is eligible for and ensure the student can access support through Title I, Part A, free school meals, full participation in school, and assistance with basic needs.