- 1 in 18 children experiences homelessness at some point between first grade and high school graduation, according to the US Department of Education.
- During the 2019-20 school year, 1,280,886 students nationally – 2.5% of all students enrolled in public schools – experienced homelessness.
- The National Center on Family Homelessness reported that more than 2.5 million children in the United States are homeless each year. This represents one in every 30 children in the United States. (America’s Youngest Outcasts: A Report Card on Child Homelessness, 2014)
- The age distribution of homeless children in the U.S. is estimated at 51% under age 6. (America’s Youngest Outcasts: A Report Card on Child Homelessness, 2014)
- Families with children make up 40% of the people in this country who experience homelessness. (Family Promise National 2015 Annual Report)
- More than 45 million people live below the poverty line of $24,300 for a family of four. (Family Promise National 2015 Annual Report)
- Almost half of all children dealing with the trauma and stress of homelessness are under 6 years old. (Family Promise National 2015 Annual Report)
- Georgia ranks 49/50 (50 being the worst) in the risk for child homelessness. See report card here – Georgia – pg 33. (America’s Youngest Outcasts: A Report Card on Child Homelessness, 2014)
- The 2010 Census data shows that Georgia’s poverty rate was the third highest in the country with Gwinnett County having almost 14% of its population living below the poverty.
- Gwinnett County has the 3rd highest total homeless population in the state of Georgia, following the City of Atlanta (Fulton) and Chatham counties. (Georgia Department of Community Affairs, 2015 Report on Homelessness)
- In May 2016, the Gwinnett County School system had approximately 1,943 known homeless students. (Gwinnett County Public School Homeless Liaison)
- In 2016, 54% of all Gwinnett County school children were eligible for free or reduced lunches. That’s almost 96,000 children, enough to fill over 1,370 school buses. (Yeswecangwinnett.com)
- Children without a home are twice as likely as other children to experience hunger, to become sick with moderate to severe health problems, to repeat a grade, to be expelled, suspended or to drop out of school and fewer than 25% graduate from high school, according to the National Center on Family Homelessness. (America’s Youngest Outcasts 2009)