Homeless

Students experiencing homelessness are those lacking reliable housing, such as if one is couch surfing.

Homeless is defined as a student who does not have a fixed, regular, and adequate
nighttime residence. This includes, but is not limited to:

  1. children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement;
  2. individuals who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings;
  3. individuals who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and 
    - migratory children (as such term is defined in section 1309 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965) who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (1) through (3). 

"Student in Care" means any person, regardless of age, who is or was under the care and legal custody of the Department of Children and Family Services, including youth for whom the Department has court-ordered legal responsibility, youth who aged out of care at age 18 or older, or youth formerly under care who have been adopted and were the subject of an adoption assistance agreement or who have been placed in private guardianship and were the subject of a subsidized guardianship agreement.

distressed homeless student with head in lap

Homeless students who are under the age of 24 may be eligible to complete the FAFSA with or without access to parents' income information. Learn more at Federal Student Aid and Homeless Youth.

How to get help if you are experiencing homelessness

Local Resources

A Servant's Heart

Housing Authority for La Salle County

IVPADS Homeless Shelter

Tri-County Opportunities Council

Safe Journeys (for survivors of domestic violence or sexual assault)

Northwestern Continuum of Care
    A Continuum of Care (CoC) is a regional or local planning body that coordinates housing and services funding for homeless families and individuals ("What is a continuum of care?", 2010).

    Ron Lund/Project NOW 309-793-6391 rlund@projectnow.org

Services locator

2-1-1 Get Connected, Get Help

View more IVCC & Community Resources

State Resources

Federal Resources

Navigate to the other Special Populations pages through In This Section at the top to view resources that might also apply to you, such as low income.

Questions? Contact Crystal Credi via text/phone at 815-224-0575 or email crystal_credi@ivcc.edu.