Student Homelessness Hits Record High

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The number of homeless students in U.S. public schools is at an all-time high, according to new data.

There were 1.2 million homeless students during the 2011-12 academic year, from preschool all the way through high school. That's up 10% from last year and 72% from the start of the recession, according to the most recent data available from the National Center for Homeless Education, which is funded by the Department of Education.

Advocacy groups say continuing economic struggles are causing more students to end up homeless, meaning that they live in shelters, motels, or are staying temporarily with someone else because they have nowhere to live.

"The recession isn't over for America's poorest families," said Barbara Duffield, Policy Director of the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth. "There's a gap between what jobs are available, what those jobs pay and what affordable housing is available."

She said school employees -- from teachers to bus drivers to cafeteria workers -- have been getting better at identifying homelessness, a factor that may also be contributing to the greater number of homeless students.

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http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/24/pf/homeless-students/index.html