Archived Homeless List Serve Messages
Subject: Myths and Facts about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and NAEHCY Unaccompanied Youth Toolkit
ListServe Message Date: November 21, 2011
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) –has a fact sheet entitled: "Ten Myths and Facts About SNAP for Homeless Persons". The fact sheet comes from the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service and contains the following clarification (among others):
"8. MYTH: Homeless youth have to provide their parent’s income when they apply for SNAP benefits.
FACT: Homeless young people can apply for SNAP benefits on their own. Their parent’s income does not count. If you live in a shelter, bring a letter from a shelter employee that says you live there when you apply."
The fact sheet is available at http://www.usich.gov/resources/uploads/asset_library/myths-homeless.pdf.
I'll also take this opportunity to remind you that NAEHCY has three new Unaccompanied Youth Toolkits on their website. The Toolkits consist of 1-2 page briefs on a variety of topics, including:
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Protocol for Enrolling Unaccompanied Youth in School: Whom Do We Call?
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Unaccompanied Youth Identification Checklist and Tools to launch an identification event in schools and shelters (“MV-FAFSA Week”)
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The Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act Basics
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FAFSA Basics and Practical Tips
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Access to Services Tip Sheets (Medicaid, TANF, Social Security, SNAP, shelter)
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Training Resources
The Toolkits can be found at http://naehcy.org/tk/tk.html.
Donna Cash
Supervisor, Federal Compliance
Coordinator, McKinney-Vento Program
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
P.O. Box 480, 205 Jefferson Street
Jefferson City, MO 65102-0480
Office: 573-522-8763 Fax: 573-526-6698
dese.mo.gov
Missouri public schools: the best choice...the best results!