In the most recent school report cards released last fall for the 2020-2021 school year, Russell County Schools experienced a 28 percent decrease in student homelessness.
For the 2019-2020 school year, it was reported that 239 Russell County students were classified as homeless by the district.
In the 2020-2021 school year, that number dropped to 172.
It breaks down by gender with 89 male and 83 female.
Broken down by race, this includes 4 African-American students, 26 Hispanic or Latino students, and 140 White.
The reporting criteria defines homeless children and youths as individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. The term includes –
• Children and youths who are:
o sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or
a similar reason (sometimes referred to as doubled-up);
o living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of
alternative adequate accommodations;
o living in emergency or transitional shelters; or abandoned in hospitals;
• Children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings;
• Children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings;
• Migratory children who qualify as homeless because they are living in circumstances described above.
