OUR WORK AHEAD: 2022
EXPAND to cover more rural areas of New Mexico, helping to create additional summer and after school meals locations. As federal safety net programs are set to expire in 2022, our team will be leading the charge to expand school meal programs, boost EBT, spearhead national legislation that could bring free school meals to all Native American students around the country and ensure our former legislation stays intact and becomes more robust to help more children eat as we work to end hunger in New Mexico.
SUPPORT 50 plus districts and charters that are currently identifying zero students to improve identification and build a more robust McKinney-Vento program.
IMPLEMENT a universal housing screener in school districts around the state to develop a more comprehensive data set of how many students are experiencing homelessness.
SUPPORT state and local partners with expertise and technical assistance on homelessness.
PUBLISH Appleseed’s work on cash transfers.
LAUNCH a new community of practice for the 53 LEAs receiving Education for Homeless Children and Youth funds.
LAUNCH into the design phase of the Supporting Early Childhood Success and collaborate with potential funders on the pilot.
SECURE additional legislative funding for five full-time Family Success Lab staff at DOH.
SUPPORT DOH and ECECD as they carry out their research agenda, and assist with translating the analysis into real world policy and programmatic changes.
COLLABORATE with state agencies, such as the Public Education Department (PED) and Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) on progress of the FSL and support development of their respective research agendas and data-sharing efforts.
ADVOCATE for a moratorium on utility shut-offs for families with children during the school year and develop a process to assist families with utility arrearages.
Families with school-aged children who have their utilities disconnected due to economic hardship may qualify as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act, the federal law on homelessness in the educational context. The U.S. Department of Education defines homeless children and youth as individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including children living in housing that lacks fundamental utilities such as water, electricity, or heat. One can imagine how challenging it is to study in the evenings, get a decent night’s sleep or have healthy meals at home without utilities.