During Homeless Youth Awareness Month, WCA calls for accurate counting of young people experiencing homelessness and stronger housing supports.
More than 2,600 Westchester students, or 19.1 of every 1,000 enrolled in the county’s schools, were identified as homeless in 2025, a rate now above pre-pandemic levels, according to Westchester Children’s Association’s (WCA) Children By the Numbers: 2026 Data Bulletin. Most of them are largely invisible in federal homelessness data.
Most Youth Homelessness Is Hidden
In 2024, 1,709 Westchester students experiencing homelessness, about seven in 10 of those whose housing arrangements were known, were “doubled up,” sharing housing with friends or relatives because they had no stable home of their own. Under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) definition, doubled-up families generally are not counted as homeless, leaving most of these students out of federal homelessness data and related assistance.
Homelessness Is Concentrated and Unequal
About three-quarters of Westchester students identified as homeless live in four communities: Mount Vernon (1,050 students), Yonkers (603), White Plains (140) and New Rochelle (138). Black students in Westchester are 54 times more likely to experience homelessness than White students: 77 of every 1,000 Black students, compared with 1 of every 1,000 White students, a gap that has grown since 2020. And just 69% of students experiencing homelessness graduate in four years, compared with 91% of all students.
“Homeless Youth Awareness Month should remind us that homelessness is not always visible,” Rabinovitch said. “If Westchester wants to reduce youth homelessness, we need to see these young people, count them accurately and invest in the supports that can keep a period of instability from becoming a lasting crisis.”
What WCA Is Calling For
● Count every young person without a stable home. Congress should pass the bipartisan Homeless Children and Youth Act, aligning HUD’s definition with the one schools use. ● Expand the Housing Access Voucher Program and make it permanent in the next state budget.
● Strengthen schools’ role in identifying and supporting students experiencing homelessness.
What Families and Residents Can Do Under the federal McKinney-Vento Act, students who are doubled up or staying in motels have rights at school, including transportation to stay in their school and a school liaison. Families can find their district liaison here.
About Westchester Children’s Association Westchester Children’s Association (WCA) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of Westchester’s young people by shaping policies and programs to meet their needs and keeping their well-being at the top of the public agenda. WCA uses data, research and advocacy to help ensure that every child is healthy, safe and prepared for life’s challenges, regardless of race or zip code.