Homeless Children

According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, 1.35 million U.S. children are homeless on any given night. (2000) Families are now the fastest growing segment of the homeless population, accounting for almost. 39% of the nation's homeless. (2000) The average age of a homeless person in the U.S. is 9 years old. 41% of homeless children are under the age of five. Nearly 20% of homeless children lack a regular source of medical care. Homeless children are hungry more than twice as often as other children. Almost 1/3 of low-income families do not have enough money to prepare three meals a day. 14% of homeless children are diagnosed with learning disabilities - double the rate of other children.
21% of homeless children repeat a grade because of frequent absence from school. Within a single school year, 41% of homeless students attend two different schools, 28% attend three or more. For children and youth identified as homeless by State Departments of Education, 35% lived in shelters, 34% lived doubled up with family or friends and 23% lived in motels or other locations. (FY 2000).

There are over 1.3 million homeless children just in the United States. While many are struggling with their families just to survive, many of them are making an effort to get an education; often overcoming what seems like insurmountable odds.

Watch the exclusive CW Network Special on Monday afternoon, from 3-4, hosted by Joan Lunden. http://www.americasinvisiblechildren.com/

In this show you will meet some of these remarkable children and see what they have to do just to go to school everyday so they can get an education.

For more information you can visit, the National Coalition for the Homeless website. http://www.nationalhomeless.org/, you can also visit them on My Space! http://www.myspace.com/nationalhomeless