LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Homelessness affects all ages negatively, but for infants and children, it can have particularly challenging developmental consequences if not addressed.  

According to nonprofit SchoolHouse Connection, childhood homelessness is a, “traumatic experience that harms  young children and has been found to be associated with delays in language, literacy and social-emotional development.”  

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 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provided a study that concluded individuals in the U.S. are most likely to experience homelessness in their first year of life.  Children ages one to five are the next most likely age group to experience homelessness the study says. 

“The years from prenatal to age 3 are the foundation for all future learning behavior and health,” Executive Director of SchoolHouse Connection Barbara Duffield said, “We know that homelessness can have long-lasting consequences, but it doesn’t have to. High quality early learning programs can mitigate the harm of homelessness and can help young children thrive.”

But the negative effects of homelessness early in life don’t end there, but persist into their early school years. 

A 2021 research project by the University of Michigan found that roughly half of homeless Michigan students were absent from school, twice the statewide average.  As a result they suffered educationally.  

Of the nearly 1.3 million homeless children across the U.S. only 3.4% of them are enrolled in Early Head Start programs, compared to child care at 2.5%, and Parents as Teachers Home Visiting at 1% according to a SchoolHouse Connection report.  In Michigan, of the estimated 11,882 homeless children, only about 7.7% are served by one of the aforementioned programs. 

Congress reauthorized the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV) which was set to expire in late September after the support of many agencies throughout the country under the bill titled Jackie Walorski Maternal and Child Home Visiting Reauthorization Act of 2022 (H.R. 8876).   

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In 2022, the program awarded $7,483,642 to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services for the purpose of assisting pregnant women and parents with young children who live in communities that face greater risks and barriers to achieving positive maternal and child health outcomes.