PA's Rural, Suburban, & Urban Regions Experienced Increases in the Number of Children & Youth Experiencing Homelessness

Not just an urban phenomenon

We continue to dive into the PA Department of Education (PDE)’s reports from the School Year (SY) 2022-23 that showed 46,705 children and youth identified as homeless throughout the Commonwealth, an all-time high. This edition looks at the numbers by the PDE’s 8 regions in which it organizes its strategy to support students experiencing homelessness.

PDE manages the “Education for Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness” (ECYEH) program, a federally-funded effort designed to eliminate barriers to education for students experiencing homelessness. PDE contracts with eight regions in the Commonwealth for local implementation. The regions use the funds to train school personnel in 500 school districts and 176 charters(i), provide direct service like uniforms, transportation, mentoring, summer programming, school supplies, and more. The education system is the only statutorily required federal agency required to report on children and youth experiencing homelessness. 

Please be aware that the total numbers are not all ‘students.’ PDE is required to report on all children and youth experiencing homelessness, including in shelter, served in Early Intervention, and other programs. While there are still gaps in collecting data from all organizations serving this population, (i.e., child care, home visiting, etc.), these are the best available numbers reported publicly.

Here are the 8 regions.