The local liaison serves as one of the primary contacts between homeless families and school staff, district personnel, shelter workers, and other service providers. The liaison coordinates services to ensure that homeless children and youth enroll in school and have the opportunity to succeed academically.

Local liaisons must ensure that:

• Homeless children and youth are identified by school personnel and through coordination activities with other entities and agencies;
• Homeless students enroll in, and have full and equal opportunity to succeed in, the schools of the LEA;
• Homeless children and youth and their families receive educational services for which they are eligible, including Head Start, Even Start, and preschool programs administered by the LEA, and referrals to health, mental health, dental, and other appropriate services;
• Parents or guardians of homeless children and youth are informed of educational and related opportunities available to their children, and are provided with meaningful opportunities to participate in the education of their children;
• Parents and guardians and unaccompanied youth are fully informed of all transportation services, including transportation to and from the school of origin, and are assisted in accessing transportation services;
• Enrollment disputes are mediated in accordance with the requirements of the McKinney-Vento Act; and
• Public notice of the educational rights of homeless students is disseminated to locations where they receive services under the McKinney-Vento Act.

In meeting these responsibilities, local liaisons must assist homeless children and youth with such activities as the following:

• Enrolling in school and accessing school services;
• Obtaining immunizations or medical records;
• Informing parents, school personnel, and others of the rights of homeless children and youth;
• Working with school staff to make sure that homeless children and youth are immediately enrolled in school pending resolution of disputes that might arise over school enrollment or placement;
• Helping to coordinate transportation services for homeless children and youth; and
• Collaborating and coordinating with State Coordinators for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth and community and school personnel responsible for providing education and related support services to homeless children and youth.

The Student Services Division is an articulated continuum of programs and services designed to provide the opportunity for all students to achieve maximum benefit from their educational experience.