Homeless People are Grade School Students, Too

Published November 18, 2008 @ 08:40PM PT

Ten-year-old Tanysha Dempsey lives in a homeless shelter in Minneapolis. Although she's only in the fifth grade, she has dreams of one day attending college. And if Margo Hurrie has her way, she will.

As an office administrator for the Hennepin County school district in Minnesota, Margo Hurrie does whatever it takes to make sure homeless students stay in school. In 1991, she worked with a total of 50 homeless students. This year, she's seen more than 5,000.

Minneapolis, like every other major city in the U.S., has seen a huge increase in the number of enrolled students who are homeless. This figure is expected to rise as the economy slows.

Tanysha and Margo were interviewed for NPR's All Things Considered, which was broadcast this morning.

Take seven minutes and have a listen. This will open your eyes to the reality of homelessness in America.

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Comments (1)

we're doing about homeless children and i saw this picture and it made me really think about how lucky i am i sometimes complain for not having something and then some people have nothing so i think i might stop in the fututre and really think

Posted by Tasmin Collingwood on 01/28/2009 @ 09:03AM PT
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Shannon has worked in homeless shelters and service organizations in San Francisco, the Triangle region of North Carolina, and currently in the greater Boston area. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.