Home to sprawling suburbs, shopping centers and Blue Ribbon schools, Macomb County does not fit the description of an area to know homelessness. 

But it does.

In the four school districts that serve Macomb Township, 206 students were reported as homeless by the Michigan Department of Education in 2011.

In the county, 665 homeless students have been identified and assisted by the Macomb Intermediate School District this year—a 41 percent increase over last year said MISD Homeless Education Liaison Kathleen Kropf.

And though the term “homeless” may summon images of cardboard boxes beneath freeway overpasses, the 2002 McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Subtitle VII-B) defines “homeless children and youth” only as those who lack “a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence.”

So whether a student’s loss of home is temporary or permanent, if they are living in a shelter, motel, car or sharing the cost of housing with others because of a loss of housing or economic hardship, they are considered homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act.

Macomb Township districts not immune to homelessness

In Chippewa Valley Schools, that definition applies to 35 of the 15,691 students in the district. In L'Anse Creuse Public Schools, it’s 96 of 11,633. Utica Community Schools counts 57 of its 28,313 students as homeless and though New Haven Community Schools reports only 18 homeless youth, with only 1,251 students in the district, New Haven has the highest percentage of homeless students of all districts serving Macomb Township, according to the MDE.

Overall, the number of homeless students in Michigan's public schools increased by 37 percent between the 2009-10 and 2010-11 school years, according to the MDE.

While a number of factors can be considered the cause of homelessness, Kropf attributes local cases to foreclosures, rental eviction, a lack of full-time jobs and the end of unemployment benefits.

With Michigan’s minimum wage at $7.40 per hour, and the estimated income needed to maintain a two-bedroom apartment almost double that at $14.34 per hour, even a full-time job at the minimum wage is inadequate to cover the cost of living.

“I will talk to people that are in hotels or are doubled up with friends or family temporarily,” Kropf said. “They say, ‘We’re not homeless. We have a roof over our head.’ I talk to them a bit more and they all ask, ‘Do you know anyone that is hiring full-time?’ Many of these parents are working two to three part-time jobs just to make ends meet with no benefits.”

Through educational services and referrals offered by the MISD and local districts, homeless families are given assistance with school transportation, enrollment, school supplies, clothing, food and medical needs.

“Homelessness affects students both emotionally and academically,” Kropf said. “Studies show every time a student has to move and change schools, it can hold them back. Some are much more resilient than others, and some do better in a new place. But keeping them in the same schools is important, even when they have to move around for housing.”

For this reason, the MISD and local districts work to provide the necessary transportation to ensure students are not forced to change schools mid-year because of housing.

Demand for aid expected to increase in new year

The demand for this aid and all other forms of assistance looks to only increase in the new year.

When Gov. Rick Snyder signed legislation in September that would end cash assistance welfare benefits for those who have used it for 48 months or more, an estimated 11,000 families were affected, according to Michigan Radio.  

Thousands more are expected to lose assistance with rent, utilities, food and clothing in coming months.

While local agencies and food banks such as the Macomb Charitable Foundation, St. Peter Lutheran pantry and MCREST will work to meet this need in the township and county, there is a concern supply won't meet demand when thousands more lose benefits in 2012.

"There is a big storm coming," Scott Dzurka of the United Way of Michigan told Michigan Public Radio.

January will bring an even great challenge when thousands more long-term unemployed people lose their extended jobless benefits and begin to look "elsewhere for help when the state cuts them off," Dzurka added.

“With the state cuts affecting the homeless population, it is frightening to think what will happen to these children and their families without additional private contributions helping organizations like MCREST to make up the difference," said Angela Willis, executive director of the Macomb County Rotating Emergency Shelter Team, in a release. 

Local assistance available

For student referrals or questions, contact Kropf at the MISD at 586-228-3490 or kkropf@misd.net.

Other assistance is available through the following local agencies:

Macomb County Community Services Agency (MCCSA)

• North Action Center, New Haven, 586-749-5146,
• Central Action Center, Mount Clemens, 586-469-6964

Macomb County Department of Human Services (DHS)

• Mount Clemens, 586-469-7700
• Sterling Heights, 586-254-1500

Macomb Homeless Coalition

• 586-285-0400

Macomb County Emergency Food Program (County Food Bank)

• Dial 211