A staggering number of college students in Los Angeles are HOMELESS, survey finds
by: Russel Davis
NaturalNews.com
Thursday, July 06, 2017
A survey commissioned by the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees revealed that one in five of the community college’s 230,000 students are homeless.
The survey respondents comprised of 4.4 percent of all students who were enrolled in the fall of 2016.
Survey data revealed that 19 percent of students reported being recently homeless, while eight percent said they were thrown out of their homes. Among students who had been on foster care, 38 percent reported being homeless for a time in their lives. The poll also showed that four percent of students had been evicted from their previous addresses, while six percent stayed in an abandoned building, car, or other areas not meant for housing. Likewise, the survey revealed that 65 percent of students reported not being able to afford balanced meals, while 60 percent said they were not able to buy more when their food ran out.
In addition, the survey found that specific groups were particularly susceptible to the unfortunate living conditions. According to the poll, black students, Native American students, and those who had been in foster care or served in the Armed Forces were particularly hit hard by homelessness and food insecurity compared with the overall averages. Students who were divorced, who were widowed, or who had children also showed higher food and housing insecurity scores.
“The overwhelming challenge, I was told, is that it was their quality of life and the living conditions that mattered. If you are insecure about where you’re going to get the next meal from, of which almost two-thirds of our students are, and if you don’t know where you’re going to sleep tonight, where almost one out of every five have that, how the heck can you expect us to concentrate on our classes and do well?” Los Angeles Community College district trustee Mike Eng was quoted as saying in DailyNews.com.
According to Eng, the district was in talks with private developers to build below-market housing on one or more campuses. He also noted that the district was negotiating with food vendors to provide free meals to students in need.
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