Homelessness As Positively Affected by the McKinney Act

This paper will attempt to explain the plight faced by one of the largest, most vulnerable populations in America today: the homeless, and how the McKinney Act has affected it. This out-group faces many hardships and many different policies have been put into place both helping and harming their overall wellbeing. Policies Implemented For Homeless Many social welfare policies have been put into place throughout the course of history to attempt to deal with the ever present problem of homelessness. Starting at the first widespread attempt by the government with the implementation of the Elizabethan Poor Law, which placed the plight of the poor into the realm of responsibilities of the community; and serves as the very basis for our†¦show more content†¦The lack of affordable health care contributes as well to the problem of homelessness; an unexpected illness can turn finances upside down leaving families suddenly homeless (Center for Public Interest Research, nd). Political factors also play into homelessness, when the federal government slashes funding for integral social programs like housing assistance the number of homeless persons skyrockets (Center for Public Interest Research, nd). Social problems are yet another contributing factor as to why a person may end up homeless, especially with drug and alcohol addictions, and as many as 25% of the homeless suffer from some form of mental illness (Center for Public Interest Research, nd). Many women and children are homeless as a result of fleeing domestic violence and there not being adequate shelters or programs to provide assistance (Center for Public Interest Research, nd). Description and History of McKinney Act Policy The McKinney Act originally consisted of fifteen different programs that provided a broad range of services from emergency shelter, transitional housing, job skills training, health care, and education and in some instances permanent housing (HUD, 2013). Since its inception the policy has been renewed and expanded upon many times. In October 2000 President Clinton renamed the policy the McKinney-Vento Act when a longtime supporter of the act, Representative Bruce Vento passed away. (NCH, 2006) Currently the act has nine different titles asShow MoreRelatedHomelessness Among Families With Children3141 Words   |  13 PagesAbstract Homelessness among families with children in an increasing problem in the United States today (Martin, 2014). A single mother with two to three children is among the fastest growing homeless demographic (Bassuk, 2010). Research shows that root causes for homelessness among families with children include, a lack of affordable housing, unemployment, domestic violence and substance abuse. Furthermore, studies support that homelessness negatively affects families with children by resulting inRead MoreThe Family Environment Can Have A Positive Or Negative4338 Words   |  18 Pagesacademic achievement. It is imperative to understand what is meant by negative family environment for the study to be relevant to the understanding of how it effects academic achievement. This study will address poverty, culture and diversity, homelessness, parental involvement, and teacher beliefs. Poverty affects approximately 15 million children in the United States (Jiang et al., 2015). Children living in poverty, struggle daily to survive. The effects of poverty on academic achievement haveRead MoreMulticultural Education in a Pluralistic Society21691 Words   |  87 Pagesdiet. It allows families to save money for college educations and the purchase of new cars. Most low-income and middle-income families are barely able to cover their expenses from one paycheck to the next, and are only a few paychecks away from homelessness if they lose their job. Higher incomes provide security for families who do not need to worry about paying for the essentials and have access to health care and retirement benefits. WEALTH Although the difference in income among families is