Being homeless doesn’t always mean sleeping on concrete. Homelessness is when someone does not have a safe and reliable home to live in. Sometimes people choose to run away and sometimes they are forced out of their home.
According to studies from the National Alliance to End Homelessness, there is an estimated 610,042 people experiencing homelessness on any given night in the United States. Nearly one-quarter of all homeless people were children under the age of 18.
For information about Students in Transition, contact Carol Johnson at 423-6955.
Churchill County School District has a program in place to help children and youth who are experiencing homelessness. The McKinney-Vento Act Students in Transition Program allows the district to support students in a homeless situation or when they are in transition between permanent housing situations. The program assists with educational needs within the school setting including, but not limited to, school supplies, fees and tutoring.
The Students in Transition Program’s primary goal is to remove barriers to success in school and life for homeless youth.
The Students in Transition Program identified 184 students last year as being homeless. This year in the first three months of school 60 students have already been identified. The majority of students and their families that are homeless are living with family and friends due to economic hardship.
The Churchill County Parks and Recreation Department is holding its annual Fallon Turkey Trot 5 K on Saturday, November 22nd. Proceeds from this event will benefit the Students in Transition program. Participants are also asked to bring a personal hygiene item to donate.
For more information about the Turkey Trot, contact the Churchill County Parks and Recreation Department at 775-423-7733.