What Homeless Kids Need

For nearly six months now, I have been serving as the executive director of Positive Tomorrows, a privately-run nonprofit school and family support agency for homeless children in Oklahoma City and their families.  During these months, I have learned much about the effects of homelessness on children and would like to take this opportunity to share what I’ve learned.

According to the National Center on Family Homelessness (NCFH), there are nearly 6,000 homeless children in our state, under six years of age or enrolled in grades k-12.  I am certain there are more, because some homeless children don’t get enrolled in school.  At Positive Tomorrows, we enrolled several students in late October who hadn’t been in school yet this year.

From my perspective, homeless children face a number of practical issues that make it very hard for them to succeed in school or in other aspects of life.

Their sleep habits are often very poor.  It’s difficult for a homeless child to get a good night’s sleep.  Homeless shelters can be crowded and noisy, and require everyone to get up very early, which makes for a short night.  Sometimes two or three families share a small apartment and adults get the bedrooms.  Children end up on the floor in the living area and often can’t sleep until the television goes off, if it does.

Their clothing is a problem.  They may not have enough clothing because of growth spurts and wear the same thing over and over to school.  Or it may not be the right size—they wear hand-me-downs with pants cuffs dragging on the ground or shoes that fall off their feet.  One staple at Positive Tomorrows is a good supply of boys’ belts because they often wear pants that are too big for them.  Clothing may be dirty because mom doesn’t have access to a washer and dryer.

Their health is at risk.  Due to substandard housing and inadequate transportation, a homeless child may have uncontrolled asthma, allergies, high blood pressure, inadequate dental care, etc.  If they make it to a doctor, their parents may not have the education or reading ability to navigate the healthcare system, secure prescriptions, and follow directions.  They may be staying with friends or relatives and don’t have control over their living environment, making it difficult to deal with hygiene and cleanliness.

They are difficult for DHS workers to track.  These children may fall under the radar screen of DHS because they simply can’t find the children.  If a teacher, health care worker, or other adult asks DHS to check on a child’s welfare, it’s not unusual for DHS to find that the family has moved from their most recent address. 

Their parents are stressed beyond belief.  Parents are struggling with the everyday concerns of feeding the family, finding shelter, and staying alive on the streets.  They may be hiding from an abusive spouse.  Parents often don’t have the emotional or educational resources to pay attention to their children, read books, or offer emotional security.

Homelessness is not the child’s fault.  The problem is complex and stems from poor choices by uneducated, under-resourced parents and habits learned from generations of family members who have lived in poverty.  Our best chance to break the cycle is to help these children experience stability and learn there is a better way. —by executive director Susan Agel, reprinted from the OKC Rotary News, 11/03/2009

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   Gary Brown says:

   December 4, 2009 at 10:32 am

   God bless you, Susan! I don’t think any organization has a more needed and worthwhile mission than Positive Tomorrows. I really appreciated the peek into the lives of these children – it helps me understand the obstacles these kids face everyday. Thanks again for the truly wonderful work you do.