Homeless Program (HARP)

  • The federal  McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act and Texas state law protect the rights of homeless children and youth to receive a free and appropriate public education. Nearly everyone in Texas who is between the ages of 5 and 21 on September 1 of the school year and has not been expelled has the right to attend school, even if they:

    • do not have a permanent address
    • have a previous address in another town
    • do not live with a parent or legal guardian
    • live with friend of family temporarily
    • sleep in a shelter
    • sleep in a campground, car, abandoned building, or facility not designated for, or ordinarily used for regular accommodations for, human beings
    • do not have school records


    Fact sheets and online resources provided by the Texas Education for Homeless Children and Youth (TEHCY) have a great deal of information about implementing provisions of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act and Texas state law.

      We're Here To Help

      • Our goal is to ensure that homeless students may enroll in and have an equal opportunity to succeed in school.

        District Homeless and Foster Care Liason:
        Christianne Shinn
        902 Rev. R. A. Abercrombie Drive
        Killeen, Texas 76543
        Christianne.Shinn@killeenisd.org 
        254-336-0240

      HARP Dispute Resolution

      • If a dispute arises over school selection or enrollment in a school, the child or youth should be immediately admitted to the school in which enrollment is sought pending resolution of the dispute. Students should be provided with all services for which they are eligible while disputes are resolved, consistent with the definition of “enrollment.” Enrollment is defined in the McKinney-Vento Act as “attending classes and participating fully in school activities”.

        The child, youth, parent, or guardian shall be referred to KISD Homeless Awareness & Response Program (HARP), which, after receiving notice of the dispute, shall carry out the dispute resolution process as expeditiously as possible.

        The parent or guardian of the child or youth shall be provided with a written explanation of the school’s decision regarding school selection or enrollment, including the right of the parent or the youth to appeal the decision.