5/20/19 – Identifying Students Experiencing Homelessness

Title: Identifying Students Experiencing Homelessness: How Small Changes in Email Communications Can Achieve Big Results

Date: Monday, May 20, 2019, 2:00 – 3:15PM EDT

[Certificate of Attendance available upon completion]

Schools often struggle to identify children and youth experiencing homelessness, but identification is a critical first step in providing the support needed for educational success. This webinar will share the creation and results of a pilot project and study executed by the Office of Evaluation Sciences (OES) within the General Services Administration. The project used insights from behavioral science to develop new email communication materials to share simplified information on homelessness with school district homeless liaisons and superintendents in New Jersey, New Mexico, and New York. These simplified emails were designed to help school districts accurately identify homeless students in their districts and schools. Throughout the webinar, one member of the OES project development team and representatives from the New York and New Mexico teams will share their insights and experiences so that practitioners in other school districts and states can replicate the project and improve the identification of students experiencing homelessness.

Presenters:

  • Daniel Shephard, President – Implementation Science and Communication Strategies Group; former member of the Office of Evaluation Sciences and the Obama administration’s White House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team
  • Emily Kramer, Senior Program Analyst – NYS-TEACHS
  • Dana Malone, McKinney-Vento Homeless Education State Coordinator – New Mexico Public Education Department
  • Katie Brown, Education Leads Home Program Manager – SchoolHouse Connection