LOS ANGELES HOMELESS STUDENTS NUMBERS RISE TERRIFYINGLY
In recent times I've met some adults at the library who are enrolling at certain community colleges in the county of Los Angeles for the benefits of being a student. These include:
Being able to park without harassment by police. i.e. a homeless student sleeping in their vehicle.
Free breakfast or other meals.
Free public transportation passes.
Free laptop computers.
Free showers - sometimes limited to those taking an exercise or gym class or using a campus gym.
Classes can include non-credit classes, certificate programs supposedly aimed at available employment; one need not be taking credit classes in order to eventually earn a degree.
This shows that at the community college level, it is understood that students living in poverty need basic-needs support in order to obtain education which may be necessary to compete for work. However, some of these full grown adults have simply found another means for their survival and do the same enroll and then dump out routine semester after semester. That strikes me as taking advantage of the college - or whomever the funder(s) is.
Some time ago I got up on my soapbox and ranted about the homeless student situation in Los Angeles and I recently reread what I wrote. I was stunned by my own expressed anger. That anger has not gone away, but maybe back then my sense of injustice also revealed an idealism I no longer have.
So this morning, I asked Google, about the Los Angeles homeless student situation. Based on the Los Angeles Times report as of April 2026 (though stats from a couple years ago were used by researchers)
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-04-01/la-county-student-homelessness-study
Key drivers include a shortage of affordable housing, economic hardship, limited federal funding for schools and longstanding inequities affecting people of color and people with disabilities.
Excerpt: LACOE HEP works to help districts and charter schools maintain compliance with the McKinney Vento Homeless Assistance Act, an integral part of the Every Student Succeeds Act.
According the the summation provided by Google AI:
Key Data on LA Homeless Students (2023-24): Surging Numbers: The number of homeless students has seen a sharp, rapid rise, representing the highest rate in the past five years.
Black Students: Approximately 11.5% of homeless students in LA County are Black, which is slightly higher than the state average.
Living Situations: Most students categorized as homeless are in "doubled-up" situations (living with others due to economic hardship), rather than on the streets.
Soon enough I realized what was happening. The same families were coming to the library for the Summer Reading Program Events. They were actually spending long hours - days on end - in the parks. At night some were in their vehicles and some were sleeping on the floors of more fortunate families, often renters in older neighborhood buildings.
