Chalkbeat NY | Though the city’s population of homeless students has remained high for more than a decade, it surged to nearly 120,000 with an influx of asylum-seeking families last year. That was a 14% increase from the year before and a record high for the city, according to Advocates for Children, a group that supports the city’s most vulnerable students.

Roughly 1 in 9 students were living in shelters, “doubled up” with relatives or friends, or otherwise without permanent housing at some point in the school year, the data showed.

Using more recent enrollment numbers would help account for asylum-seeking students who arrive in the city and then transfer between schools, Lander said in the letter.

Advocates fear that school transfers could become even more common under a city rule implemented by Mayor Eric Adams last month. The rule requires families in some shelters to exit the system every 60 days, meaning they will need to find alternative housing or re-apply for shelter. Read article