Photo: Javier Trueba | Unsplash
Only 59% of homeless students in Washington state, U.S., graduate high school in four years as compared to 83% of all students, which is similar to US-wide rates. This has a snowball effect: not having a high school degree is the greatest single risk factor for experiencing homelessness after school. One school district in Washington, North Thurston Public Schools, decided to double down on supporting its homeless students and see what it could accomplish. In North Thuston, homeless students are now graduating at nearly the same rate as their peers. The district has shown that this feat just requires dedicated and consistent support. Beginning six years ago, North Thurston hired staff, called “student navigators,” whose sole function is to attend to each homeless student’s needs, whether that’s housing or food, feeling like they belong at school, or planning for the future beyond graduation. The student navigators have a mantra, “Remove all barriers,” which they aim to do as they work hand-in-hand with students to address all manner of challenges. State education officials say that North Thurston has provided a blueprint to limiting the impact that homelessness has on the rest of the student’s life.
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