Homeless High School Students

Barbara Pytel, Paulline Larson Photography

Posted by
Barbara Pytel
Sep 24, 2006

Your step-father is an alcoholic and has made sexual advances toward you or possibly already raped you. You are 17, a junior in high school, no family in the area, and your mother won't believe you. What are the options? Many teens choose to run away from home and try to finish high school and even go on to college.

Jeff Douglas, of the Associated Press, writes that the Maplewood-Richmond Heights district in Maplewood, MO has sponsored a group home for homeless teens. An anonymous source donated $10,000 toward a shelter. Pastor Brian Newcomb of the same town is staffing the shelter with interns entering the Presbyterian ministry to act as counselors for the teens. Restaurants and grocery stores are assisting with food for the shelter which has been named Joe's Place.

According to the school's superintendent, Linda Henke, the school district's cost per year will be $33,000 plus $22,000 in estimated annual donations. The first students to live there will be a handful of 16-18 year old boys that have clean criminal records. Parents have to agree to allow their children to live in the shelter.

Local critics complain that this is mixing church and state. Others complain that schools do too much for students already. The St. Louis school district just wants to help homeless kids finish high school without having to dig through dumpsters for food or sleep in churches to stay warm. Foster homes are available for younger children. When they get to be teens, the options are few to none. I expect more shelters like this to pop up across the U.S. Unfortunately, this is the world children live in today.

For more on homeless children, visit the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth.

Read previous articles on Educational Issues.