The number of homeless students at one California high school district has tripled over the past three years.
A spokesperson for the East Side Education Foundation—a nonprofit that supports San Jose’s eastside schools—told the news outlet that the number rose because the state definition of “homeless” was expanded in 2016 under federal law to include not only those living on the streets, but those living in cars, those who live with other families in cramped spaces, and those who are “couch surfing,” meaning having no permanent home.
However, the school district did not implement the changes until recently.
The district has since increased its services to students through a partnership with the Santa Clara County Office of Behavioral Health and nonprofit community specialists.
The foundation spokesperson also said the number has increased because more students are willing to identify as homeless and the school district has improved at identifying students in need.
“They don’t have a consistent place to live every night,” the spokesperson told the local news outlet. “That causes trauma and doesn’t make their education any easier.”
San Jose has the most homeless youth in the country, according to 2023 data by the Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
According to the census data, San Jose has nearly 85 unhoused youth between the ages of 18 and 24 for every 100,000 residents.
The city also leads the category by a wide margin, with nearly 50 more homeless youth than New York City—the second-highest—which has about 36 homeless youth for every 100,000 people.
Meanwhile, the third-highest city is Los Angeles with 32 homeless youth per 100,000 residents.
