Housing
One must not be naïve about the disparities and circumstances that some
of our students have experienced. There is a segment of our student
population who were homeless, foster children, or estranged from family
because of issues related to poverty, abuse or gender/identity status
before they ever arrived at school. Returning to a home that is
unwelcoming, dysfunctional or abusive can have adverse consequences. We
must accept the fact that some of our students are among the most
vulnerable populations. According to a 2019 report on college level
insecurity Goldrick-Rab and colleagues found that 18
percent of students attending
two-year colleges, and 14 percent of those attending four-year
institutions were homeless (Goldrick-Rab et al., 2019). In the U.S. 12
percent of two-year students and 9 percent of four-year students are
completely homeless (Mendoza, 2018). This is particularly difficult
during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students have not been allowed to reside
on campus since early March. Theoretically, they went home, but what
happens when there is no home? How is keeping up with course material
balanced when the students are residing at a shelter or in their car?
Former foster children are a particularly vulnerable demographic. They
may have aged out of foster care and immediately moved into the
universities on-campus housing. In this case there is no home to go to,
the dorm was their home. Even if they are permitted to stay, they are
isolated and separated from their community on campus. Additionally,
they may be stranded on a campus that no longer provides meals and other
services they need to live.
For others, homelessness can evolve into both a physical and emotional
issue. When it comes to LGBTQ students depending on the dynamics of
their parental home it is not uncommon for them to find themselves
unwelcome into their family home after coming out. This is an especially
difficult predicament because often the student now has an emotional
struggle in addition to being homeless. In order to return home and
avoid being homeless LGBTQ students are often asked to disassociate with
who they are in order to conform to the rules of the house.
Now more than ever it is possible for students to not have a home or a
country. There is a population of students who are being educated while
in exile, in asylum or for other safety reasons cannot return to their
home country. Such issues can be further complicated by questions about
being a non-citizen or a DACA student. The completion of much of that
documentation is by campus personnel. Due to language barriers
facilitating the completion of such documentation remotely can become
more difficult. Because of their citizenship status these students may
not be eligible for the various federal public assistance programs that
were put in place as a safety net for individuals in this position.