More than 100 students in Jefferson City are homeless

The Superintendent of Jefferson City Public Schools said there are about 115 homeless students in the school system.

However, the director of an organization in Jefferson City that helps at risk youth said that number is more like 135.

Regardless of the difference in numbers, there are still more than 100 students that don’t have a home to go to each night.

“We work very hard to serve all of our kids even those kids who may be here in what we would consider to be maybe a non-traditional setting,” said Brian Mitchell, Superintendent of JCPS.

He said there may be a misconception of the term “homeless” from a school districts perspective.

It could mean students and families live in a shelter, hotel or at a relative’s home.

Elle Benage is the director of the Jefferson City non-profit organization called HALO.

“Such as their parents being incarcerated, addicts, abusive or in a situation to where the child does not feel safe to live in a home,” said Benage.

Benage said they found out about the homeless students by asking children a simple question, where do they sleep at night?

“Many of them said in their cars, a lot of them sleep on friends’ couches, but some even said they sleep in the woods or in parks if they are really desperate,” Benage said.

She said the purpose of the program is to help students who are considered homeless a way to get out of the crisis mode of where they are going to sleep at night and focus more on their education and future.

There are no shelters in Jefferson City that take in people under the age of 18, as they all require parents approval.

According to the National Center of Family Homelessness there are about 1.6 million homeless children in the United States.