Click on one of the districts
to view  program information

                USD 233 Olathe                     Olathe, Kansas

                USD 259 Wichita                    Wichita, Kansas

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

USD 233 Olathe

Nancy Keith

14160 Black Bob Rd.
Olathe, KS 66061

913-785-8284

The Olathe District Schools make every effort to facilitate enrollment of all children including those with a temporary residence.  The school district's policy is that students are immediately enrolled and placed in appropriate programs based on the information provided.  If records are updated later, then modifications are made as appropriate.

The Olathe District Schools provide information and staff training to all administrators, counselors and SIT Team staff relating to the Kansas laws and regulations that affect the enrollment of homeless children and youth.

All agencies that serve homeless children have been notified of the name of the district homeless liaison, Nancy Keith.  Any questions regarding service are to be directed to her office.

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

USD 259 Wichita

Sue Steele

810 N. Holyoke
Wichita, KS 67208

316-684-6581

316-684-7249

An educational team is being formed and part time staff are being added to better serve the needs of homeless children and their families.  Staff facilitate the enrollment, attendance and success of homeless children and youth during the school day, in after-school programs and during the summer.

The district identifies pre-K children with developmental delays and has them developmentally tested.  Because of instability and movement of the family, these preschoolers are placed as quickly as the district has openings.

Homeless children evaluation will be expedited because of the district's new Student Information System for tracking student data such as attendance, grades and performance on district benchmark assessments.

The district educates parents of homeless children with written information describing programs in the district that are available to their children in the shelter.  Two shelters provide a program one night a week in which parents participate in a parenting class, tutoring time and Family Reading Time with their children.

The liaison provides professional development through Title I to district personnel and also attends in-service trainings for district resource teachers.

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

USD 261 Haysville

Linda Long

1745 W. Grand
Haysville, KS 67060

316-554-2331

316-554-2342

To meet the critical and immediate needs of shelter, health, transportation and daycare of our students, our program partners heavily with the Wichita, KS program, since all our shelters are located there.  The Support Services/Homeless Coordinator works to identify homeless children and youth, then to connect them with any needed area service, and to follow up on the outcome of each case.

The Support Services/Homeless Coordinator also spends time in each school building, meeting on a regular basis with students, and conducting staff training on homelessness and education rights.  Our district also provides professional development training, through our new Learning Center, for any area district staff on a variety of issues relating to homelessness.  We also do parent trainings on a variety of topics, many of which are useful and relevant to homeless families.

Our program has been enhanced by new enrollment forms and procedures, geared toward making our program and services better.  We focus on doing whatever it takes to remove the barriers that hinder the positive school experience of our homeless children and youths.

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

USD 383 Manhattan-Ogden

Pam Russell

2031 Poyntz
Manhattan, KS 66502

785-587-2000

.

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

USD 475 Geary County

 Pat Anderson

123 N. Eisenhower
Junction City, KS 66441

 785-717-4027

 785-717-4002

The local homeless shelter has a policy which requires that school-aged children be enrolled and attending school within two days of being housed in the facility.  The liaison makes contact with the former district to secure the necessary records or information to ensure the best placement of the student.  Students living in the shelter receive strong staff support for regularly attending school and completing homework.  Before or after-school tutoring support as well as summer school is available.

Transportation is provided to school for children from the shelter or, in the case of students doubled up, from their current residence. 

In school, the K-12 homeless children are supported through one-on-one contact with the liaison, building principal and parents.  Academic achievement is monitored as well as regular attendance and appropriate school behavior.  The success of preschool children is measured by Parents as Teachers and Head Start staff.

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

 USD 500 Kansas City

Staci Pratt

645 Nebraska
Kansas City, KS 66101

 913-621-4690

 913-621-4695

Awareness and staff development training are methods used by the homeless liaison to identify homeless children who are in need of services in order to ensure educational success.  The homeless liaison also participates in district wide in-service training for teachers and counselors on homeless issues and what schools can do to serve homeless children and youth.

Parents of homeless children are referred to parent training classes that are provided through a family preservation program.  A Life Skill class is also provided to shelter residents.

 After-school programs operating in the school district provide tutoring and homework assistance.  Services to include preschoolers in the family shelter will be expanded and assisted through a literacy coach from the school district.

District

Contact

Address

Phone

FAX

 USD 501 Topeka

 Rosanne Haberman

 624 W. 24^th
Topeka, KS 66611

 785-295-3020

 785-575-6188

The goal is for every child to be enrolled within 24 hours of entering the shelter and in attendance at school within 48 hours.  School supplies are provided so that students can begin their new school adventure fully equipped.  Special arrangements have been made so that students can begin riding the school bus immediately rather than after the three-day wait that all other new students have.

 Two-way communication between the facilitator and schools/teachers occurs weekly to check on attendance, school performance and upcoming assignments.  Daily tutoring sessions at the shelter assist students with homework, educational group activities, and social skills building such as sealing with anger, conflict and other personally unsettling issues, as well as building self-esteem and personal skills.  This is a time designed especially to help students succeed not only in school but also outside of school.

 An extensive summer program is available as arranged for and provided by the facilitator and tutor.  The children and youth are taken to plays, concerts, museums, etc. as culminating activities for reading, language arts, math, social studies, science and social skills lessons with transportation being provided.

The facilitator identifies 4-year olds eligible for pre-school program.  In addition to identification, the facilitator arranges for transportation, health assessments, immunizations and obtaining birth certificates.  Beyond that, the facilitator is employed part-time by the district's Title I program to institute a program in the shelter modeled after Parents as Teachers.

A parenting coordinator is included in the grant.  The coordinator's job includes acting as a liaison between parents and schools; disseminating positive parenting information; facilitating the coordination between the adult literacy instructor and the K-12 certified instruction.