As we near the holiday season, and with Thanksgiving happening this month, thoughts of being with loved ones and sharing a meal in someone’s home may begin to occupy our thoughts.
However, what happens for those who don’t have a place to call home?
What is the McKinney-Vento Act?
The McKinney-Vento Act is a piece of legislation that was passed in 1987 to help ensure the well-being and safety of children who lack proper or consistent housing. Check out this video to learn more about the McKinney-Vento Act:
How does unstable housing affect children of inmates?
As of 2024, over 78 million children live in the U.S. 2% of all children in the U.S. (over 1.5 million) are homeless, and of these, 1/3 are children of inmates who are homeless (over 500,000).
Children of incarcerated parents often experience a drastically reduced family income when their parent goes to prison. This is especially true given that over 90% of people in the Texas criminal justice system are male, and many are the breadwinners of the family. With the rising housing costs in Texas, families of prisoners often are forced to move from place to place when they can no longer afford rent or home ownership, or they don’t have family to live with. Their options most often end up being living with family or friends, staying temporarily in a homeless shelter, or even becoming homeless.
Emotionally and developmentally, children need structure to thrive. When a child of an inmate is routinely bounced around to various households, they experience a sense of chaos, lack of safety and trust, and an inability to plan ahead. Not only that, but these kids grow up in a state of survival, which prevents them from being ready to learn and grow effectively.
What Sparks is doing to support unhoused children of inmates
While Sparks cannot guarantee these kids a stable residence, Sparks’ kids can experience the consistency of being in a weekly music therapy class. The music therapist shows care and support toward each child and helps them learn to be resilient in the face of numerous stresses and lack of stability in other areas of their lives. As the kids learn to cope and self-regulate, they are able to better focus at school, which enables them to achieve success in school and, eventually, graduate.
In this season of giving, would you consider giving a child of an inmate the gift of stability through weekly music therapy sessions?
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Sources:
https://schoolhouseconnection.org/article/mckinney-vento-act-quick-reference
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9075341/