Official Site of The State of New Jersey

The McKinney-Vento Act is a federal law designed to increase the school enrollment, attendance, and success of children and youth who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. All school districts must develop policies to remove barriers to the school enrollment and retention of children and youth experiencing homelessness. McKinney-Vento defines enrollment as attending classes and participating fully in school activities. The district homeless liaison (DHL) must contact the transportation department. The school district from where the student became homeless (school of origin) is fiscally responsible for providing transportation services. The excess cost of transportation can be paid for with McKinney-Vento subgrant funds and Title I set aside funds for students experiencing homelessness.

• School districts are required to provide transportation, in the same manner, to and from the school of origin, until the end of the year when the student obtains permanent housing (fixed, regular and adequate). A student is also considered permanently housed once 365 days in a district have passed.
• School districts are required to provide transportation to and from extracurricular activities.
• Depending on the nature of summer school participation, school districts are required to provide comparable transportation services for students in homeless situations. If the school district does not provide transportation to summer school for housed students, then it is generally not required to provide transportation to students experiencing homelessness, unless summer school is required for the student.

The equivalency and waiver process must be completed by school districts who wish to request that the $1.5M auto liability coverage be waived for parents or guardians transporting their child or children to school. Parents or guardians must have the $34,000 in appropriate insurance coverage as required by the Office of Student Transportation. The school district is required to submit the waiver request to the respective county office for approval. The school district must provide reimbursement for both the time while the student is in the vehicle with the parent and the mileage for the parent’s return trip to their residence.

• The McKinney-Vento Act does not specify any mileage or time limit, or the crossing of state lines for travel to the school of origin. However, if the commute is excessive and becomes a barrier for the student, the school district and the parent or guardian should reconsider the school placement.
• Mileage reimbursement and bus tickets are permissible in providing transportation services. If a district is considering utilizing public transportation, it must consider the age and maturity of the students. For example, young children cannot be expected to use public transportation alone or make any transfers.

Visit New Jersey McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program for additional information.