Trainings for McKinney-Vento

Stakeholder-Specific Video Trainings

The following are links to video training resources for districts to utilize in the implementation of McKinney-Vento for the stakeholder groups indicated:

Back-to-School: Identification and Enrollment of McKinney-Vento Eligible Students

As a new school year begins, schools and districts have the opportunity to connect with parents, families and students in ways that we haven’t had the opportunity to do in the past couple of years. Connecting with students and families who are experiencing homelessness is more vital now than ever. With a 30% drop in identified McKinney-Vento eligible students from the 2019-2020 school-year to the 2020-21 school year across Colorado, the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) is committed to supporting McKinney-Vento Liaisons in training, technical assistance and strategies for leveraging partnerships to identify and enroll students experiencing homelessness.

Please review the following resources to learn more about identification and enrollment of students experiencing homelessness during this back-to-school season

A federal brief on the role of the liaison;
A “Determining Eligibility” document that is highly recommended. It provides insights on how to assess McKinney eligibility;
Frequently Asked Questions of McKinney-Vento;
Common signs of homelessness flyer;
Tips for Teachers & Staff: How to Support Students Experiencing Homelessness
August 11, 2022 Back-to-School Webinar Recording and Slides

State level reservations are also being used to build awareness, capacity and strengthen collaborations with community-based organizations. The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) awarded three grants to community-based organizations across the state to support outreach and emergency assistance to children and youth experiencing homelessness.

Further, state level funds are being used to plan, develop and deliver Regional Collaborative Conversations to Support Highly Mobile Youth (RCC). CDE hosted the first RCC in Alamosa in April 2022, then in Fort Morgan in December 2022 and the third in Grand Junction in January 2023. Strategic follow-up to these conversations such as, professional learning communities and coaching check-ins are in the works as well as the planning for at least two additional RCCs before 2024.

Regional Collaborative Conversations

The Regional Collaborative Conversations to Support Highly Mobile Youth events create the opportunity for local communities to learn and work together in building knowledge, identifying needs and addressing barriers for Highly Mobile Youth to access and succeed in school and out-of-school time programming.

Partners in this work include but are not limited to:

McKinney-Vento Homeless Education
Foster Care Education
Migrant Education
Out of School Time

Health and Wellness
Family, School, Community Partnerships
Adult Education Initiatives

Regional Collaborative Conversations invite partners who serve highly-mobile students to attend a CDE sponsored regional event with professional development, action planning, networking and resource sharing. The event focuses on training and technical assistance related to student mobility and how school districts can implement effective interventions and strategies across the district, with the help of community partners. Intended outcomes of the RCC model include:

Provide local communities with the opportunity to build a plan for providing greater access to out of school time programming for highly mobile youth
Gather data and perspective on local challenges and how communities are working to overcome challenges in partnership
Inform the creation of the funding opportunities awarded by CDE to reduce barriers and increase access for highly mobile populations

Training Archives

2020-2021 Trainings:

Highly-Mobile Coffee Chats (Spring 2021)

February 11, 2021: Housing Resources (not recorded): DOH Presentation (PPT), CHC Flyer (PDF), and CV HDC Youth Housing Assistance Program (DOC)
March 11, 2021: My First Year as a Liaison - Recording, passcode: F8+#3RXM
April 8, 2021: SB 106, Unaccompanied Youth - Recording, passcode: mM#R.9*L
May 13, 2021: Migrant Education - Recording, passcode: 21$D!FCT

2019-2020 Trainings:

Share and Learn with Liaisons across Colorado Recordings (Spring-Summer 2020) - PowerPoints can be provided upon request.

Building Mutual Engagement between Schools and Continuums of Care

Webinar from DOLA 9/19/18

The Homeless Education and Foster Care Education Programs teamed up to host a Back to School webinar to provide the most up-to-date information on both programs.