CHICAGO _ Alanna Kellum wanted to do normal, teenage things: go to school, hang out with friends, experiment with independence. Instead, she was a sophomore in high school often missing school to take care of her twin, toddler-aged siblings.
"It was frustrating, but I always had my mind set on helping my mom," said the 17-year-old. "So I just felt like I should step in and help her."
As Kellum continued supporting her mother, the cooking, cleaning and care-taking began to take a toll on the teenager. She felt her help was becoming mandatory and that she wasn't able to live her own life, she said.
Kellum's frustrations from helping out would sometimes cause "big arguments" between her and her mother, she said. There were times Kellum would leave to go stay with friends or other family members.
"(How long I stayed) kind of depended on the situation, or how bad the argument was, or how bad I wanted to be away," said Kellum.
Between her responsibilities, the growing tension between her and her mother, and trying to decide whose home to go to next, Kellum's school life began to be negatively impacted.
"I started to miss school to help out with mom, and that was affecting my grades," said Kellum, who remembers getting Cs and Ds during this time. "Freshman year, it was just missing school and not being able to catch up."
When she was able to go to school, she was "lost in what was going on" and then had to make it home in time to help out.
"Everybody else was being in school and being able to be with their friends after school, and I just had to come straight home and help even if I did go to school," she said. "So it was like a second job."
Kellum says she doesn't remember receiving any help from school officials during her tumultuous time, but her older sisters found a program that would give her the space and freedom to focus on her studies, she said.
In September 2018, Kellum, who is one of eight children, moved into Phoenix Hall, The Night Ministry's year-round residence that opened two years ago. The residence takes referrals from the entire city, but prioritizes West Side students, specifically in Lawndale, who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability, and aims to provide pupils with academic achievement support.
Phoenix Hall, which houses up to eight students at a time, assists students in transitioning into safe and stable housing while also helping them achieve educational goals that lead to graduation, college or vocational skills.
The residence provides private bedrooms, all meals, living and study spaces, therapy, life skills sessions and more. Students can stay in the program for as long as they need until they graduate, no matter when they entered the residence.
A University of Chicago Chapin Hall study released in November details the interdependence between youth homelessness, or housing instability, and education disruption. The report also provides suggestions for schools and homeless systems to better support students experiencing homelessness.
"There is a lot of literature that's come out about what are risk factors, and we knew education was the single greatest risk factor for young people becoming at-risk for homelessness," said Melissa Kull, the study's lead director and a staff member at Chapin Hall. "We wanted to dig into that stat more."
The report identified specific risk factors that could contribute to a young person's susceptibility to homelessness, housing instability, or ending high school before graduation, such as poverty, childhood trauma, family conflict and social isolation. Kellum's situation fit into this finding from the study: "Early family instability and socioeconomic constraints pose challenges to both housing stability and educational attainment."
The relationship between youth homelessness and education was not solely a one directional association, Kull said. According to the report, "low educational attainment is a risk factor for homelessness, and homelessness is a risk factor for lower educational attainment."
Young adults who did not finish high school, or obtain a GED diploma were 4\u00bd times more likely to experience homelessness than their peers who did get a diploma, the report revealed. Similarly, youth and young adults who had experienced homelessness were less likely to have a high school education, according to the study.
"Low education was the single greatest risk (for youth who experience homelessness)," Kull said, "but we weren't looking at the other side of that. In this brief, we found that for young people who had experienced homelessness, their likelihood was dramatically greater compared to more stably housed peers. Not only do young people need stable homes ... if young people aren't able to finish their education and pursue careers and educations they like, then they aren't able to find themselves in lucrative careers that will enable them to exit (homelessness)."
Homelessness isn't always as overt as living on the street or under a viaduct. For youth, it can often look like living doubled up or couch surfing. In 2016, there were more than 11,000 unaccompanied homeless youths ages 14 to 24 in Chicago, and 85% of them were doubled up, or living in the homes of others because of their economic struggles, according to an estimate from the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless (CCH).
Patricia Nix-Hodes, director of The Law Project at CCH, works to provide free legal services to youth and young adults who are experiencing homelessness. Her work has had a big focus on the education rights of students who are homeless, she said.
Nix-Hodes explained that students who are experiencing homelessness can face challenges, like enrollment delays or denials.
"They might go to present to the school and get told that they need certain documents, like proof of residency or certain medical records," said Nix-Hodes.
The accurate protocol, Nix-Hodes explained, is that students who are homeless are to be immediately enrolled in school, and school personnel should work with the family to obtain any needed documents after the student is enrolled.
Another issue families and students face is not being identified as homeless, preventing them from getting the rights and services to which they're entitled, said Nix-Hodes.
"Students have the right to stay in their same school even after losing housing," said Nix-Hodes, "so it's important because school stability is linked to educational success. Especially for high school students trying to earn credits, staying in the same school keeps them on the path to graduation. If you have a student who's not identified (as homeless), and therefore not aware of their right to stay in the same school, then they can get behind on credits."
There are all kinds of other barriers, too, like transportation and adequate clothing, explained Nix-Hodes, "but the law is clear that any barrier to a homeless student's (school) attendance and success should be removed."
Phoenix Hall also works with the students' guardians to help with any needs that might lead to family reunification. Guardians still have legal responsibility over the student while the student is in the program.
Kellum said she didn't speak with her mother much when she lived with her; but now, she says the distance is helping their relationship.
"I was always kind of upset about not being able to enjoy my life so I really didn't communicate with her as much, but now we talk a lot," she said. "We're becoming close. I feel like we both needed space."
As Kellum has gotten more comfortable at Phoenix Hall, she's become close with the other residents and appreciates the independence. She said she's been able to focus on school and improve her grades to A's and Bs. Time at the residence has been a much needed break instead of being stressed, she said.
"It feels good," said Kellum about her new grades. She hopes to attend college to be a registered nurse or surgeon.
