Count of Homeless Students in Michigan Schools Increases by 96% in One Year

"Michigan Department of Education officials say they're only now starting to get a handle on how many students statewide are homeless. And the numbers they've collected are startling.

The number of homeless students enrolled across Michigan jumped from 7,500 in the 2007-08 school year to 14,682 in the 2008-09 school year -- a 96% increase.

A big reason is the economic situation in Michigan, which has led to massive unemployment and home foreclosures . Another reason is more accurate counting required of school districts under McKinney-Vento ...

... Kathleen Kropf, Macomb Intermediate School District's Homeless Education Liaison, said between 75% and 80% of the county's homeless students in the past year have never been homeless before."We are seeing a whole new group, mainly our middle-class citizens who have lost their jobs, and therefore their homes," Kropf said."

- Detroit Free Press

www.freep.com/article/20100418/NEWS05/4180582/1320/School-districts-face-more-homeless-students