Proposal Prospectus

          When a family becomes homeless everyone is affected emotionally and physically, however the children within the family are introduced to risk factors that can problematic for them to develop into a proper part of society.  In order for a person to develop into a productive part of society they must obtain a proper education.  This can be a problem for homeless children because they are also faced with nutritional, mental, and physical health issues that produce barriers towards a child having a proper education.   Many government and educational officials have worked towards lifting some of those barriers, but research has concluded that more work needs to be added in order for homeless children to benefit completely from their educational experiences without distractions.

                The target audience I am seeking are those who are within the Government, Education Boards, including teachers, and the directors of homeless shelters.  Since finances are a major problem when it comes to added support for homeless children, the Government needs to address adding funds so additional regulations can be put in place.  Education Boards are the ones who are directly involved with the children throughout their education.  They know what needs should be addressed, what helps and what will not.  Homeless shelter directors engage with the children while the families are staying in the shelter; there are many things that could be done on their part to help the children with their education.

                Solutions that I propose to be the best are adding funds so not only the educational barriers can be addressed, but being homeless in general.  I think this problem needs to be addressed so the children won’t have so many barriers to cross.  This includes offering housing vouchers and helping the parents with added education and job support. With the Education boards implementing a weekly meal and tutoring session for homeless families, this will help with communication between the parents and schools, added learning without the distractions of their peers, and provide a hot meal.  I think the schools should also come together in developing a packet for homeless children that includes material that is being taught for their grade.  The children can take this packet with them if they have to move and miss school while they seek shelter, that way important material is not being missed.  providing the homeless children with a snack during the day and one to take home will also be beneficial.   The homeless shelters can add a quiet space for the children to do their homework that includes computers for research projects, interactive learning sites, etc.  The shelters should also provide family counseling that way they can work through the situation together and keep closeness.

                In my proposal I will add evidence from my research, which includes Homelessness comes to school, a book that includes several researched ideas on the barriers homeless children face.  Also included will be the interview I had with Spartanburg County’s homeless liaison Richard Andrews.  He deals with these situations on a daily basis. 

By adding my personal story about facing homelessness will add pathos as well as ethos.  Since I am including so much evidence that has been well documented, this includes studies and statistics,  adds the logos.