Chaffey District opens its 'closet' to assist homeless students
ONTARIO -- The Chaffey Joint Union High School District is helping its students one shirt at a time.
The district will open its first closet that will house articles of clothing, hygiene products, undergarments, school supplies and food for students in the district who are homeless.
The shelter will operate out of Valley View High School, and to respect the student's privacy there is a private entrance.
"We're hoping that we're making it convenient. It's anonymous and it's at a pretty isolated spot where there is no embarrassment to the student," said Bill Bertrand, the district's deputy superintendent of alternative education.
Of the 25,000 students in the district which covers Rancho Cucamonga, Ontario and Montclair - 700 have been identified as homeless through the McKinney-Vento Act, which is is the primary piece of federal legislation dealing with the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness in U.S. public schools.
Children who are considered homeless in the San Bernardino County under that act might live in a motel, which is not considered adequate living conditions because the family all live in one room and might not have running water or electricity, in a transitional home or in a garage.
"I would say 90 percent of the 700 are live with one other family or more because they are unable to afford a place on their own," said Eileen Watson, outreach consultant for the district.
"We have a few families that live out of their car or live in motels and with the economy the way it is there are so many kids whose families are dealing with foreclosure, unemployment and eviction."
The closet was funded by a grant that is used to support and enrich McKinney-Vento identified students.
"We were informed in July that the grant was accepted, and we were authorized for additional funding, so we started to plan for the closet concept and finding a suitable location and fixing the room up with all the features it needed, which was pretty timely," said Bertrand.
"We do have limited resources and we provide the required support by law but wanted to extended our services beyond what is required by law."
Schools like Montclair High hosted a 5K walk in May to raise money for the school's homeless students, which number 122.
More than 500 people took part in the walk called "Miles for Montclair" which raised more then $12,000 for their students.
Weeks before the opening of the closet, district staff, classified and teachers were asked to collect and donate items to it.
"People want to help, and it's more than heart warming," said Watson.
"If you give people the opportunity there are so many of them that want to reach out to the kids."
How to help
Want to donate? Visit Valley View High from 1801 E. Sixth St., Ontario, on the northwest corner of the campus. Information: (909) 985-0966.
The district will open its first closet that will house articles of clothing, hygiene products, undergarments, school supplies and food for students in the district who are homeless.
The shelter will operate out of Valley View High School, and to respect the student's privacy there is a private entrance.
"We're hoping that we're making it convenient. It's anonymous and it's at a pretty isolated spot where there is no embarrassment to the student," said Bill Bertrand, the district's deputy superintendent of alternative education.
Of the 25,000 students in the district which covers Rancho Cucamonga, Ontario and Montclair - 700 have been identified as homeless through the McKinney-Vento Act, which is is the primary piece of federal legislation dealing with the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness in U.S. public schools.
Children who are considered homeless in the San Bernardino County under that act might live in a motel, which is not considered adequate living conditions because the family all live in one room and might not have running water or electricity, in a transitional home or in a garage.
"I would say 90 percent of the 700 are live with one other family or more because they are unable to afford a place on their own," said Eileen Watson, outreach consultant for the district.
"We have a few families that live out of their car or live in motels and with the economy the way it is there are so many kids whose families are dealing with foreclosure, unemployment and eviction."
The closet was funded by a grant that is used to support and enrich McKinney-Vento identified students.
"We were informed in July that the grant was accepted, and we were authorized for additional funding, so we started to plan for the closet concept and finding a suitable location and fixing the room up with all the features it needed, which was pretty timely," said Bertrand.
"We do have limited resources and we provide the required support by law but wanted to extended our services beyond what is required by law."
Schools like Montclair High hosted a 5K walk in May to raise money for the school's homeless students, which number 122.
More than 500 people took part in the walk called "Miles for Montclair" which raised more then $12,000 for their students.
Weeks before the opening of the closet, district staff, classified and teachers were asked to collect and donate items to it.
"People want to help, and it's more than heart warming," said Watson.
"If you give people the opportunity there are so many of them that want to reach out to the kids."
How to help
Want to donate? Visit Valley View High from 1801 E. Sixth St., Ontario, on the northwest corner of the campus. Information: (909) 985-0966.
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