NAEHCY and Postsecondary Impact

Higher education offers one of the surest pathways out of poverty and homelessness. Yet youth who experience homelessness face barriers to many basic resources meant to aid students with preparing for and launching their postsecondary journeys. Homeless youth often lack the support to apply to, enroll in, and complete their postsecondary education.

NAEHCY is working to help remove these barriers. We are here to assist youth, educators, service providers, and advocates in their efforts to make higher education and other postsecondary opportunities an attainable reality. Our staff, board members, and Postsecondary Committee members are continuously seeking out opportunities to share resources and professional development with state and local homeless liaisons, higher education points of contact, and other postsecondary stakeholders. NAEHCY is committed to providing our members and stakeholders with information that is instrumental in understanding the journey of youth experiencing homelessness, as they graduate from high school and continue their educational journeys.

Featured Resource

Cover image of the SPOC User GuideThe SPOC (Single Point of Contact) User Guide is a resource for professionals who support housing-insecure, college-bound youth and postsecondary students. Our 2nd Edition (2024) is enhanced with new examples, useful document templates, and links to additional resources for working effectively to support youth with unstable housing.

NAEHCY introduced the original version of the SPOC Model in 2018, and has further enhanced this tool based on feedback from numerous individuals we have met in the field. (Thank you!) We invite you to reach out to Brandy Gros, Postsecondary Education Consultant, at bgros@naehcy.org to let us know how you’re using the Guide and how we might assist you with building out your program or practice.

An Important First Step

Understanding legislative policy is the first step toward helping homeless students who are pursuing postsecondary opportunities. NAEHCY recommends the following resources:

  • The College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA) of 2007 (establishes that unaccompanied homeless youth qualify as independent students for purposes of federal financial aid)
  • Application and Verification Guide ( this is the U.S. Department of Education Guidance for Financial Aid Administrators)
  • Higher Education Opportunity Act: Homeless and Foster Youth (passed in August 2008 and contains numerous provisions to increase homeless and foster students access to postsecondary education)
  • The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) (includes new components that will directly assist homeless students’ transition to higher education, including new requirements that school counselors provide advice to homeless youth to prepare and improve their readiness for college, and that school district homeless liaisons ensure that unaccompanied homeless youth are informed of their status as independent students for college financial aid and obtain verification for the FAFSA)

Contact Us

Please contact our Postsecondary Education Consultants, Jessica Biel, jbiel@naehcy.org, and Brandy Gros, PhD, bgros@naehcy.org, to learn more about the technical assistance NAEHCY provides to support positive postsecondary outcomes for youth experiencing homelessness.

If you have questions about policies impacting homeless youth, we recommend contacting our partners at NCHE, the National Center for Homeless Education, at 1-800-308-2145.