Students Experiencing Homelessness in Washington’s K-12 Public Schools: Trends, Characteristics and Academic Outcomes, 2015-2018

Published: September 27, 2019

SHWAOutcomesReport2019 Statewide RuralOur annual in-depth analysis of student homelessness data from public schools across the state demonstrates that academic outcomes for students experiencing homelessness continue to be worse than those for housed students—including those of low-income students who are housed. New to this year’s report, we disaggregate the data by geographic location and find that on a per-capita basis, rates of student homelessness are highest in school districts located in rural communities. Also for the first time, we track and compare student outcomes over four school years, from 2014-15 to 2017-18, revealing both encouraging and discouraging trends. Like last year’s report, our analysis concludes that students living doubled-up have similarly low academic outcomes as those living in hotels/motels, in shelters, and unsheltered. We also note again that six of every 10 students experiencing homelessness in Washington are students of color.

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