McKinney-Vento Education in Maine

The Maine Department of Education and Maine schools follow the provisions of the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. This law helps students whose housing situations are impacting their education. All students are guaranteed the right to a free, appropriate, public education. They can remain enrolled in the schools they have been attending even if they are temporarily staying out of the district and also have the right to enroll in their new school of residence.

To help keep students in school during times of housing instability, enrollment should be immediate, even if families cannot provide typically required documents or immunization records right away. Schools must provide transportation for students who need it to attend school.

McKinney-Vento protections apply to public school students PreK–12 who “lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,” including children and youth:

• Sharing housing due to loss of housing or economic hardship
• Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate housing
• Living in emergency or transitional housing
• Abandoned in hospitals
• Having a primary nighttime residence in a public or private place not designed for regular sleeping accommodations
• Living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, or bus/train stations
• Migratory students meeting the descriptions above