Mothers, students, teachers and community volunteers from our new Homeless Education Committee are busy running outreach at Chicago schools.
They decided to launch fall outreach to raise awareness about the educational rights of homeless students and to learn about the experiences of other students and families. Committee leaders chose schools where they work or that their children attend. They have been to Senn, Rickover, and Orr high schools, as well as Gale Elementary, on the North and West sides of the city.
Outreach has been very successful. Nearly 200 flyers with information about the educational rights of homeless students have been handed out and more than 75 parents and students have been surveyed so far.
Said leader Amaro Julian, 20, “Outreach was a great time for me, because it gave me a chance to let students know what their rights are. I talked to a student who was in a tough spot. He was moving from place to place and having trouble paying school fees. It felt awesome to give him information that could really help him.”
“While conducting surveys, I met students with very valuable perspectives. I learned a lot from the experience,” said leader Andy Greenia, 20 (pictured above, conducting a survey).
The committee plans to continue its outreach throughout the month of October.
– J.D. Klippenstein, Community Organizing intern