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.