Superintendent Behr convened district staff and two McKinney‑Vento liaisons on Oct. 2 to brief the Mountain View Whisman School District Board of Trustees on services for students experiencing homelessness.

Trustees heard that the district provides immediate enrollment, school stability, transportation when needed, and access to school programs under federal McKinney‑Vento law, and that the liaisons are working to connect families with school and community resources.

The presentation, led by McKinney‑Vento liaisons Priscilla Bogdanich and Eduardo Rios, summarized counts and trends. Bogdanich said the district began the school year with about 180 McKinney‑Vento students and had 193 in early September; staff noted the year‑end count for the prior school year was 248 and that the cumulative number for 2024–25 was roughly 310 when transient cases are included. Rios said the liaisons’ work is “solely, rooted on fed on federal law,” and described the program’s core services: immediate enrollment, school stability, transportation as needed, and equal access to programs.

Nut graf: District staff credited expanded outreach, a dedicated resource center and partnerships with local agencies for reductions in chronic absenteeism and suspensions among McKinney‑Vento students, but they cautioned that academic performance for these students remains “significantly underperforming” district averages.

Staff described a series of operational steps and partnerships. The district opened a family resource center (SPARK) in 2024 to provide a private intake and referral space for families to receive food, clothing, school supplies and transportation help and to attend trainings. Staff work with county and local partners — including shelters, food and clothing programs, Pacific Clinics and CSA — and meet monthly with county McKinney‑Vento and foster‑youth liaisons to coordinate services.

Rios and Bogdanich said the district has focused recent improvement efforts on reducing chronic absenteeism and suspensions and on re‑training principals and at‑risk supervisors so McKinney‑Vento liaisons are included in behavior‑incident decisions and re‑entry planning. The district reported a nearly 30% reduction in chronic absenteeism among McKinney‑Vento students over three years and a higher enrollment rate in the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP) compared with other socioeconomically disadvantaged students, but staff said persistent academic gaps remain.

Trustees and speakers pressed for operational details. Trustee Conley asked about cumulative counts and transportation; staff said a district bus runs daily to the shelter and that a Shoreline safe‑parking pickup is available if requested. Staff said most families living in RVs or safe‑parking report a general area where they stay; two students’ immediate locations were reported as uncertain on the night of the meeting. On supports, staff said roughly 80% of McKinney‑Vento students participate in after‑school programs.

Trustees also asked about federal funding stability. Staff said funding for the current year is in place but that the picture for the following year remains uncertain; they expected more clarity in October. Trustees discussed advocacy options should federal funding be reduced.

Ending: Trustees praised SPARK and the liaison work, urged continued outreach and cross‑agency advocacy, and asked staff to return with further data and continuing updates. Public commenter Mr. Nelson commended the chronic‑absence improvements and urged attention to academic declines that affect schools with larger low‑income populations.