On a crisp November morning, residents of South Whidbey are stepping out of bed, wolfing down their breakfast and heading to the office or classroom for another day of work; but for some, the day may begin a little differently due to another night spent without permanent housing. The majority of these individuals are adults, but several others are children and teens.
National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, an annual event designed to bring issues such as poverty and homelessness to the forefront of national discussion, is Nov. 15 through 23.
According to Marilynn Norby, South Whidbey School District Homeless liaison and Gail LaVassar, Readiness to Learn Foundation executive director — both South Whidbey School District employees — there are approximately 80 district students this year who lack permanent housing. Some are living with parents while others sleep in cars or tents or on the couches of friends.
Lori Cavender, executive director at Ryan’s House for Youth — a non-profit organization on South Whidbey which supports young people ages 13-17 who are without permanent housing — spoke with The Record from Kansas City, Miss., where she was attending a conference of the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth.
According to Cavender, the percentage of homeless children per capita is about equal nationwide, both in rural and urban areas.
Homeless students during the 2013/2014 school year on South Whidbey numbered 86, a decline from approximately 109 in 2011, Cavender said. Ryan’s House has helped reduce the number by working to place some teens with host families. Many others, however, remain without permanent housing throughout the school year due to a lack of available hosts.
“There are no words to express how bad I feel when I am unable to provide a home for a student,” Cavender said.
Ryan’s House is planned to one day become a shelter for homeless children, the vision of the organization’s founders, but for now Cavender said the organization is focusing upon its host family program. Last year, she said, 14 teens were successfully placed with hosts.
Usually teens become homeless because they are either forced out of the house, sometimes due to a parent’s disapproval of a child’s lifestyle or orientation or decide to leave after recognizing the unhealthy nature of their environment. The majority, however, leave because of a parent’s mental illness, neglect or abusive behaviors, Cavender said. A much smaller percentage become homeless due to other circumstances such as a family’s relocation, gang relations, juvenile delinquency or struggles with addiction.
“The kids we work with want a better life for themselves and want to get themselves out of the bad situation their parents have placed them in,” Cavender said. “They realize their home lives are not healthy and sometimes it is safer for them to be out in the woods or in their car than to be with their family.”
According to the federal Health and Resources Services Administration of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, homeless youth are more susceptible to mental health problems than their housed counterparts and are also more likely to face barriers in obtaining treatment. Homeless youth often display symptoms of depression and post traumatic stress and attention deficit disorder. The federal Health and Resources Services Administration estimates that between 19 and 50 percent of homeless adolescents struggle with mental illness compared with 4 to 9 percent of the housed adolescent population.
In addition, said Cavender, students who lack permanent housing are more likely to fall behind in school, especially if forced to relocate and transfer.
“Kids that are in a homeless situation in any manner — couch surfing, in a car, in a tent, with or without a parent — all of these things are detrimental,” Cavender said.
Through the South Whidbey Family Resource Center, LaVassar, Norby and other staff members provide what LaVassar refers to as “wraparound services” which include help or referrals to resources for mental and physical health, finances, shelter and food for about 300 students total, including the 80 on South Whidbey who lack permanent housing.
“In a lot of ways, we are a primary resource,” said LaVassar, explaining that due to South Whidbey’s rural makeup, it can be more challenging for families to access services such as shelters and health care which may be more readily available in urban areas.
The resource center partners with organizations such as Good Cheer, Whidbey Island Nourishes and Ryan’s House for Youth and ensures that social services outreach personnel from the Department of Social and Health Services are available at the organization weekly.
“If we see a pattern of unmet needs for families and kids, we try to find a way to fill the void,” LaVassar said.
Norby and LaVassar concurred with Cavender that untreated mental health problems are often a factor in homeless students’ lives, both as it pertains to family members and the child. The South Whidbey School District provides counseling and psychological services within its schools, but care for adult family members is often more difficult to obtain due to barriers such as finances or a lack of awareness.
“It creates a lot of instability and trauma,” LaVassar said of the effects of a parent’s untreated mental health on a child. “Often the kids fend for themselves in some ways and have to become the adult in the situation because the parents have mental health and cognition problems.”
Through one-on-one meetings and liaison services, LaVassar and Norby work to help parents to identify and resolve problems in order to enhance students’ ability to succeed, regardless of initial barriers. The center also provides an art program and safe after-school homework space for kids who need a safe place to go after school or whose family lives may lack stability.
“To see a kid who has struggled graduate or a kid in a homeless situation or really difficult family situation join a sports team or another group of friends, that makes my heart soar,” said LaVassar.
