MORGAN COUNTY — Morgan County’s student homeless population is one of the highest in the state, according to numbers released from the Indiana Youth Institute, both in terms of students per 1,000 and the total number of homeless students.
The numbers also show the county’s homeless student population more than doubled between 2008-09 and 2013-14.
Morgan County had 875 homeless students at the end of the 2013-14 school year, according to the numbers, up from 385 at the end of the 2008-09 year. That number was third in the state for total number of homeless students, behind Marion County’s 4,958 and Lake County’s 1,064.
The county was second in the state in number of homeless students per 1,000 with 75, trailing only Jennings County in southeastern Indiana east of Seymour. That county had 84 homeless students per 1,000. Cass County was third with 69 students per 1,000 and Perry and Montgomery counties tied for fourth with 57 students per 1,000.
Broken down by district, Martinsville had 437 homeless students and Mooresville 522. Monroe-Gregg Schools had one and Eminence Community Schools have 12. Those numbers are slightly different than the 875 students overall due to a number of factors, including transfers and school districts that cross county lines.
However, homeless does not necessarily mean living outside under a bridge or in a cardboard box, though it can mean that. Most of the students in the county categorized as homeless are living “doubled up,” or with another family.
The Mooresville Consolidated School Corp. said that was the case for 99 percent of its homeless students, and Metropolitan School District of Martinsville representatives said that number was similar for them. There are also students who may be living somewhere else after a fire damaged their house and the house is being rebuilt.
“You can’t judge a book by its cover,” Mooresville McKinney-Vento coordinator Tammy Medsker said of the data. “We rely on families to provide the information, and we have to interpret the data.”
The McKinney-Vento law is a federal law that says each district must provide homeless students with equal access to education.
Martinsville representatives said they weren’t surprised by the data. Martinsville offers services for homeless families in WellSpring, Desert Rose and new services soon to open through Churches in Mission, but sometimes those services serve as a draw to families from around the area. When those families come, they have a hard time leaving.
“There are not a lot of jobs in Martinsville, and many families can’t get the income to have a vehicle,” MSD of Martinsville family services coordinator Patti Ostler said. “When a business closes, there’s nothing to take its place. It makes it hard for families to dig themselves out, and they want to do that.”
Mooresville Superintendent David Marcotte said a rise in expenses combined with a leveling of wages has created tough circumstances for a lot of families.
“Wages haven’t kept up with expenses; that’s the reality of wages,” Marcotte said. “That pushes a lot of families to seek a different living situation to help themselves out.”
Both the Martinsville and Mooresville school districts have many programs to help homeless students.
In Martinsville, the district works closely with both Desert Rose and WellSpring shelters to provide services. Also, the district has a clothes closet in the basement of its Central Education Center to provide students with needed items.
“A lot of it is brand new,” Family Services Coordinator Karen Mimna said.
West Middle School hosts a food pantry once a week, and United Way hosts a backpack attack to help students with school supplies.
Staff are taught to identify homeless students based on a number of factors, including a drop in attendance, falling asleep and poor hygiene.
“They’re taught to ask the right questions,” Mimna said.
In Mooresville, the district has a Bundle Up Mooresville coat drive, and the district works closely with the Lions Club, local churches, Core Fitness and other local business that donate supplies.
“We get great support from local services,” Tammy Medsker said. “Our students get support no questions asked, and we try to help everyone equally.”