Homeless students in the Mountain Valley Region

McKinney-Vento Homeless Education

Homeless students that reside in the Mountain Valley Region of RSU #10 are protected by law to help minimize educational disruptions. The law is the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. 

Under McKinney-Vento, homeless students are guaranteed the right to a free, appropriate, public education. When students become homeless, they can remain enrolled in the schools they have been attending, although they might no longer meet residency requirements. McKinney-Vento also guarantees homeless students the right to enroll in a public school even if they lack the typically required documents and immunizations. In addition, homeless students are guaranteed the transportation they need to attend school.

According to McKinney-Vento, "homeless" can be defined as an individual who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence, including children and youth:

• Sharing housing due to loss of housing or economic hardship
• Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate housing
• Living in emergency or transitional housing
• Abandoned in hospitals
• Awaiting foster care
• Having a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, regular sleeping accommodations
• Living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations
• Migratory students meeting the descriptions above

For more information, please visit http://www.maine.gov/doe/homeless/index.html

If you have any questions or need information about homeless students in the Mountain Valley Region, please contact me at Mountain Valley High School.

Welcome!  I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker at Mountain Valley High School.  I've been working for the School District since 1996, initially working in the former MSAD #43 in all 4 schools, ranging from elementary through high school.  In 2009 I began as the director of the Pennacook Learning Center and in 2015 decided to return to Mountain Valley High School.  

I have been working in the field since 1984 when I began as a child care worker at the Rumford Group Home.  Since that time I have worked at various group home, spent seven years employed by the Department of Health and Human Services as a child protective worker.

I have held a Batchelor's level Social Work License (LSW) since 1989.  In 2007 I returned to school in the Master in Social Work program at the University of Maine at Orono where I earned the honor of being recognized by the faculty as the Outstanding Social Work Student of the year in 2009/2010.

I'm humbled and honored to work in a field that allows me to assist others to improve their lives.  You may contact me at Mountain Valley High school at rgreene@rsu10.org

The Importance of a Quality Education

Ever wonder how important your level of education will make in your earning power?  According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2012 the median income for a young adult depends greatly on their level of education.  Here are the facts:

• Less than high school - $22,900
• High School diploma - $30,000 (31% more than no high school diploma)
• Bachelor's degree - $46,900 (56% more than just a diploma)
• Master's degree or higher - $59,600 (27% more than a bachelor's)

*Between 1995 and 2012, this  pattern of higher earnings associated with higher levels of educational attainment also held across sex and racial/ethnic subgroups (White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian). Source: http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=77
You don't need to have a Master's degree in order to have a comfortable life.  Student's have options on furthering their education that may fit their interests and learning styles, including community colleges and trade schools.  However, the goal of having a high school diploma, combined with some form of post secondary education, will greatly enhance your earning power.