The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provides $70 million in fiscal year (FY) 2009 funds under the McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth program, which is authorized under Title VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq. (McKinney-Vento Act). The McKinney-Vento ARRA funds are a one-time source of funds that supplement the McKinney-Vento funds made available under the regular FY 2009 appropriation. These additional resources will assist Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) in addressing the educational and related needs of some of the most vulnerable members of our society – homeless children and youth – during a time of economic crisis in the United States. The McKinney-Vento program is designed to address the problems that homeless children and youth face with enrolling, attending, and succeeding in school. Homeless children and youth should have access to educational and other services needed to ensure that they meet the same challenging student academic achievement standards to which all students are held.
