The mission of the Families and Youth in Transition Program is to ensure that every displaced child and youth experiencing homelessness receives free, appropriate, public educational opportunities; to provide training and support to schools, shelters and the community; and to increase awareness about the issues experienced by children, youth and families experiencing homelessness.
Every DCPS school has a McKinney-Vento Liaison who supports students who are displaced. The liaison can assist students and families with transportation assistance, school uniforms, school supplies and provide information regarding in-school or community-based resources.
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act Definition of Homelessness
- Children and youth who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence;
- Children and youth who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelter (including DC transitional housing); are abandoned in hospitals;
- Children and youth who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned building, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; children and youth who have a primary nighttime residence that is a private or public place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings;
- Migratory children who qualify as homeless because they are living in circumstances described above; and
- Unaccompanied youth who are not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian, who qualify as homeless because they live in circumstances described above.
How to Get Help/Support
Contact your school’s McKinney-Vento (MKV) Liaison.
- Each school has an identified school-based MKV liaison who receives training on the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. This staff member is responsible for protecting the rights of students experiencing homelessness and providing needed supports. Download a list of MKV liaison contacts[XLS].
- If a displaced child or youth is having trouble enrolling in school, please contact the Families and Youth in Transition Program at (202) 576-9502.
Contact the Families and Youth in Transition Program
Program Email – dcps.fytp@k12.dc.gov
Program Number – 202-576-9502
Bryan Diaz
LEA Homeless Liaison
Program Manager
Families and Youth in Transition
Email – bryan.diaz@k12.dc.gov
Phone – 202-422-5643
Timothy Durant Jr.
Program Coordinator
Families and Youth in Transition
Email – timothy.durant2@k12.dc.gov
Phone – 202-309-5363
If you are in need of emergency shelter during or after work hours, please contact:
Virginia Williams Family Resource Center
920 Rhode Island Ave, NE
Washington, DC 20017
(202) 546-0017
Hours: Monday through Thursday, 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM and Friday, 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Services: Intake center for all emergency shelters, community resources, public benefits, case management.
Hypothermia/Emergency Shelter Hotline
Phone Number: (202) 399-7093 or 211
- Notes: When the temperature falls below 32° Fahrenheit between November 1 and March 31, all people who are displaced must be housed in the District. After 3:30 p.m. and on weekends, during extreme temperature alerts (any hour), families should call the Shelter Hotline for transportation to the DC General Family Shelter or other available family shelter. The Shelter Hotline is operated by the United Planning Organization (UPO).
- The Homeless Shelter Directory provides a list of shelters and various resources.
