ATLANTA (AP) — When families are evicted, their children’s schooling can be disrupted.
Federal law includes provisions to help homeless and evicted children stay in school, but families don’t always know about them and schools don’t always share information. In addition to the instability that comes with losing a home, relocation can also deprive children of the networks they rely on for support.
AP followed Atlanta mother Ceshita McNair’s year-long quest to find new housing after being evicted. An out-of-work film industry veteran, she drove hours for Uber to borrow money and eventually secured a rental in the right area so her eldest son could stay in high school. At $2,200 a month, they were the only “semi-affordable” apartments in a rapidly growing number of apartments. become more upscale Old 4th Ward rented to single mother with new eviction record.
Still, her son did not grow up. Before re-enrolling at her dream high school, McNair considered a homeschool program. Despite continuing to take on challenges, McNair is determined. To provide better educational opportunities for her three children.
Here are some key takeaways from AP. The year after McNair’s trip.
Evictions often force families to attend schools with fewer resources.
Like many evicted families, McNair and her children ended their lives in a tough school district. spend more money on students Something that costs less.
In Atlanta, each student spends about $20,000 a year, $7,000 more than in the suburban district where the family moved after being evicted from their apartment last year. More funding for schools means smaller classrooms, more psychologists, career guidance counselors and other supports.
protected thanks to federal law homeless and evicted studentsMcNair’s children were able to continue attending school in Atlanta, even though the only housing available was 40 minutes away in another county. They were also entitled to free transportation to those schools, but McNair said the district didn’t let her know that until after school. Their eligibility to remain at those schools expired late last year after new housing was found.
Support system is also important
The suburban neighborhood the family finds themselves in after being evicted is filled with brick colonies and manicured lawns. McNair knows that while it’s a dream for some families, it’s not her dream. “It’s a support desert,” she said.
McNair, who grew up in New Jersey near New York City, sees opportunity in the larger metropolitan area of Atlanta. She wants to use libraries, electric scooters, bike paths, hospitals, rental assistance agencies, Buy Nothing groups and food pantries.
“These are all resources that allow you to support your family even in the absence of support,” she said. “Who wouldn’t want that?”
Finding safe and affordable housing after eviction is difficult
It took McNair months to scrape together the funds and find a landlord willing to pay her rent in an increasingly gentrifying neighborhood, even though she was recently evicted.
Built in 2005, Zillow’s second-floor apartment was a middle-class dream with granite countertops, crown molding, and polished wood floors. But up close, the apartment appeared to have been abused. Her apartment tour was rushed and the rental agreement was full of mistakes. She signed anyway.
Shortly after, while she was waiting for her landlord to install more smoke detectors and fix the oven and refrigerator, McNair’s locks stopped working. The apartment was sold as a short sale.
The new owner wanted Ms. McNair to leave, but she consulted a lawyer, who reassured her that she could stay. Eventually, she even moved some of her family’s belongings into the apartment.
But finding a new apartment in their preferred neighborhood doesn’t solve everything. At night, McNair’s 15-year-old son, Elias, takes care of his younger brothers while she drives an Uber. That’s the amount you need to make enough to pay $450 a week to rent a car and pay your rent and bills.
Elias cannot be monitored while McNair is out. And a few days after he entered school, Elias’ all-night game habit had already attracted the attention of teachers. One night, while driving for Uber, she couldn’t stop thinking about an email from her teacher. “I have to get home so Elias goes to bed on time,” she says, crying. “But I have to work. I’m the only one paying the bills.”
Consistency is important for teens’ learning
Mr. McNair attributed some of Elias’ lack of motivation in school to personal trauma. His father died of a heart attack in 2023 while Elias was at basketball practice. Hurt by that loss and repeated housing moves, Elias failed two classes last year as a freshman. His mother worried that changing schools would jeopardize any chance of academic recovery.
But since Elias started skip school This fall, McNair filed paperwork expressing her intention to homeschool him.
That quickly turned out to be difficult. Elias did not study for school when he was alone at home. And when homeschooling groups met twice a week, McNair found, they required parents to pick up their children afterwards, rather than allowing them to use public transportation or electric scooters. It was unbearable.
McNair considered enrolling her son in a suburban school district, but Atlanta school officials advised against transferring if possible. He needs to go to school, preferably his old school in Atlanta, to study for midterm exams, the source said.
Now that Elias is back at school every day, McNair is able to deliver food through Uber Eats without having to worry about police asking why his child isn’t in school. She wished she had tried harder and asked Elias for help sooner.
But it was easy to explain why she didn’t. “I was running around just trying to find a place to live and take care of my uncle, so I couldn’t put enough energy into that.”
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