What is meant by the term “homeless children and youth?”
The McKinney-Vento Act defines homeless children and youth as individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.

The term includes children and youth who are:
1. Sharing the housing of others due to Loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason (sometimes referred to as doubled-up);
2. Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations;
3. Living in emergency or transitional shelters;
4. Abandoned in hospitals;
5. Children and youth who have a Primary nighttime residence that is a Public or private place that is not designed for, or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.
6. Children and youth who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings;
7. Migratory children who qualify as homeless because they are living in circumstances described above.