Homeless Innovative Programs
Torrance Unified School District was one of the Local Educational Agencies (LEA) selected by the California Department of Educatin (CDE) through a competitive grant process to administer a Homeless Innovative Program (HIP) grant for two years (2022-2024). The purpose of the HIP grant is to identify innovative practices implemented and aligned with the provisions of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Title 42 of the United States Code, Section 11431 et seq.) to improve the educational stability, access, support, and academic achievement of children and youth experiencing homelessness. LEAs demonstrated that they have developed and implemented innovative practice(s) that support students experiencing homelessness, which can be shared statewide.
TUSD developed an innovative strategy of creating a joint multidisciplinary project, Building Bridges within the district, and an innovative multi-tiered case management system to implement needed targeted MV services along with a partnership with a local university to become a teaching institute. Building Bridges and the multi-tiered case management system is a result of limited resources, parent and staff needs assessment, and district data which demonstrates the need for targeted support and interventions. The project was created to effectively leverage district and community resources to specifically target the needs of Mckinney Vento students through multiple layers of support for the whole Mckinney Vento family. Building Bridges allowed the District Mckinney Vento program to expand beyond staff strictly working with Mckinney Vento students and to incorporate a broader coalition of resources.
HIP grantees are required to provide proven practices and program implementation strategies that will support children and youth experiencing homelessness. Therefore, this page is provided as a resource to any district staff, LEA, or coordinator with customizable tools to implement changes that improve student outcomes for students experiencing homelessness.
Sample Building Bridges Documents Below, access customizable versions by clicking on toolkit!
This site provides information using PDF, visit this link to download the Adobe Acrobat Reader DC software.