SPOKANE, Wash. — With school starting in nine days, Spokane Public Schools is mobilizing a specialized team to ensure that families displaced by wildfires can get their children back into the classroom.
The Homeless Education and Resource Team, known as HEART, is working directly with more than 1,900 households affected by the fires to remove barriers that could prevent students from attending school. When the Spokane fires destroyed the homes of 158 students, HEART jumped into action to help families access supplies and transportation to school.
HEART is not a new program. It typically serves students who have lost housing for various reasons throughout the year.
The program’s core mission centers on what officials call “protecting the school of origin.” No matter where a child is displaced, the program works to bring them to the school that aligns with their home address.
“We make sure that kids can stay at those schools and with that are providing transportation no matter where those students are currently staying,” said Sarah Miller, the McKinney-Vento liaison for Spokane Public Schools.
Miller emphasized that maintaining relationships with peers and trusted adults is important for displaced students. Since the fires struck, the program has already processed 120 requests from families seeking assistance — a combination of those displaced by fires and families needing help for other reasons.
HEART provides comprehensive support throughout a family’s displacement. The program doesn’t end once school starts — it continues working with families through the end of the school year, when they return to permanent housing.
“Our program is there throughout that whole duration and through the end of the school year, or when they return to that permanent housing,” Miller said.
The district will use different modes of transportation to pick up students, including yellow school buses and minivans through a partnership with Zum Transportation.
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