Common Themes in the Life Stories of

Common Themes in the Life Stories of Unaccompanied Homeless Youth in High School: Implications for Educators Linda M. Raffaele Mendez, Sarah Dickinson, Emily Esposito, Justine Connolly & Leah Bonilla Contemporary School Psychology The Official Journal of the California Association of School Psychologists ISSN 2159-2020 Contemp School Psychol DOI 10.1007/s40688-017-0148-8

1 23

Your article is protected by copyright and all rights are held exclusively by California Association of School Psychologists. This eoffprint is for personal use only and shall not be self-archived in electronic repositories. If you wish to self-archive your article, please use the accepted manuscript version for posting on your own website. You may further deposit the accepted manuscript version in any repository, provided it is only made publicly available 12 months after official publication or later and provided acknowledgement is given to the original source of publication and a link is inserted to the published article on Springer's website. The link must be accompanied by the following text: "The final publication is available at link.springer.com”.

1 23

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol DOI 10.1007/s40688-017-0148-8

Common Themes in the Life Stories of Unaccompanied Homeless Youth in High School: Implications for Educators Linda M. Raffaele Mendez 1 & Sarah Dickinson 1 & Emily Esposito 1 & Justine Connolly 1 & Leah Bonilla 1

# California Association of School Psychologists 2017

Abstract In this study, we explored the life stories of unaccompanied homeless youth (UHY) who continued to attend high school despite no longer being in the custody of a parent or guardian. A qualitative approach allowed participants to share their life stories in their own words. Nine students (five males, four females) ranging in age from 17 to 20 were recruited from a community-based organization serving homeless youth to participate in individual interviews. Thematic analysis revealed nine themes reflecting chaotic, impoverished family environments marked by multiple forms of abuse juxtaposed with individual and extrafamilial factors promoting resilience. Implications for supporting UHY in schools are discussed. Keywords Adolescents . At-risk youth . Interviews . Qualitative According to the National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE 2014a), any student without a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence is considered homeless. Homelessness can take many forms, including sharing others’ housing (known as being Bdoubled-up^), staying in shelters, or being unsheltered and living in public places or campgrounds. While most homeless youth continue to live with their families, a subset known as unaccompanied homeless youth (UHY) have separated from their families and are no longer in the physical custody of a parent or guardian (NCHE 2014a). These youth may live temporarily with other individuals (e.g., relatives, friends), but they do not have a parent or legal guardian * Linda M. Raffaele Mendez [email protected]

1

University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, FL 33620, USA

regularly providing for them. During the 2012–2013 academic year, over 1.2 million students in the USA were identified as homeless, with 76,000 reported to be UHY (NCHE 2014b). The challenges of homelessness result in many UHY dropping out of school (Aratani and Cooper 2015). Some, however, stay in school despite the instability of their living situations. In the current study, we conducted individual interviews with UHY who continued to attend high school despite being unaccompanied and homeless. Using thematic analysis, we aimed to highlight common themes in their life stories that would provide educators with a deeper understanding about this population and inform school-based supports and services.

Pathways to Homelessness and Risks for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth According to the NCHE (2002), the primary causes of homelessness among UHY include physical or sexual abuse by a parent or guardian, neglect, family conflict, and parental substance abuse. These factors can lead youth to run away from home because their living circumstances cause significant distress. Others are considered Bthrowaways^ who left home because their parents encouraged them to leave, abandoned them, or locked them out of the home (Aratani 2009). After becoming homeless, risk factors for UHY include higher rates of physical health problems and substance use in comparison to those of housed peers (Noell et al. 2001; Weinreb et al. 1998) as well as physical and sexual (re)victimization (Stewart et al. 2004). UHY also experience higher rates of mental health problems in comparison to housed youth, including disruptive behavior disorders, social phobia, major depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; Aratani 2009; Buckner et al. 1999; Whitbeck et al. 2007). Poor school outcomes are common as well. During the

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

2012–2013 academic year, less than half of UHY met or exceeded state proficiency requirements (47% in reading and 44% in math; NCHE 2014b). Additionally, 35% of youth with repeated experiences of homelessness dropped out of high school compared to 16% of youth with no experience of homelessness (Aratani and Cooper 2015).

The Life Experiences of Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Most of what is currently known about the lives of UHY has focused either on paths to homelessness or coping mechanisms. The types of experiences that are common among UHY and what is known about how they cope with their circumstances are described in the following sections. Trauma and Disruption The lives of UHY are often marked by turbulence. Disruptive life events include frequent transitions and chronic exposure to trauma (Aviles de Bradley 2011; McManus and Thompson 2008; Toolis and Hammack 2015; Tyler 2006). Estimates of transition range from once every 3 months or less (Tyler 2006) to 18 moves before leaving Bhome^ (Tyler and Schmitz 2013). Continual transition may be attributed to familial dissonance and/or trauma (Toolis and Hammack 2015; Tyler 2006). Family history is often marked by substance abuse (Aviles de Bradley 2011; Tyler 2006; Tyler and Schmitz 2013); maltreatment, including physical and sexual abuse (Tyler 2006; Tyler and Schmitz 2013); violence (Tyler and Schmitz 2013); and criminal activity (Tyler 2006). The chronicity of trauma and disruption is often a catalyst for youth leaving home (Aviles de Bradley 2011; Tyler and Schmitz 2013). Maladaptive Coping Maladaptive coping strategies are often used by UHY to deal with familial and environmental stressors (Williams et al. 2001). These strategies include running away, fighting, engaging with deviant peers, dropping out of school, withdrawing (Williams et al. 2001), engaging in self-injurious or suicidal behavior (McManus and Thompson 2008; Williams et al. 2001), and using drugs (McManus and Thompson 2008). Adaptive Coping While many UHY engage in maladaptive behaviors, others find ways to adaptively cope with stressors. Examples of adaptive coping include agentic action, positivity, religiosity, and connectivity. Agency is defined as UHY taking action to remove themselves from homelessness (Toolis and Hammack 2015). This action is marked by great determination to meet basic needs (Williams et al. 2001), identification of internal and external sources that facilitate success (Aviles de Bradley 2011), independence, and an ability to adjust to change and learn in new environments

(Raghallaigh and Gilligan 2010). Positivity serves as an escape from the stigmas associated with homelessness (Toolis and Hammack 2015) and includes gratitude and hope for a better future (Carlson et al. 2012; Raghallaigh and Gilligan 2010). Religiosity may serve as a source of purpose and comfort for homeless youth (Williams et al. 2001). Connectivity involves developing consistent, reliable, and trusting relationships (Williams et al. 2001). Finally, involvement in prosocial organizations (e.g., churches) and maintenance of at least one family tie may buffer negative outcomes (Carlson et al. 2012).

Serving Homeless Youth in Schools Given the complex needs of UHY, implementation of adequate school-based academic and emotional support is critical. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. § 11431 et seq.), reauthorized in 2004 as part of No Child Left Behind, offers educational protections to homeless youth. The McKinney-Vento Act requires each state to have a plan for how homeless students will be given access to the same academic standards as all other students. It also requires that schools provide educational and other needed services to afford homeless students the same opportunities to succeed. Despite these protections, the McKinney-Vento Act does not address all areas of need for homeless youth. For example, while the McKinney-Vento Act requires schools to provide referrals for students to outside service providers as needed, it is likely that UHY do not have the financial resources to afford care outside of the school setting. Additionally, students and families are required to identify themselves as homeless in order to receive protection under the McKinney-Vento Act. However, not all UHY identify as homeless because they may not be familiar with the legal definition of homelessness or the rights they have through the McKinney-Vento Act (Wynne and Ausikaitis 2013).

Rationale for the Current Study Our aim in this study was to develop a better understanding of the life stories of youth who continue to attend high school despite being unaccompanied and homeless. This is a group of students who have shown remarkable resilience by continuing their education despite their homelessness and yet remain highly vulnerable due to no longer being in the custody of a parent or guardian. Through gathering their life stories in their own words, we endeavored to understand common risks they had experienced and how they had persevered in school despite their challenges. We purposely kept our interviews minimally structured to allow UHY to share what they deemed to be the most salient aspects of their life stories. From their stories, we extracted themes that allowed us to understand

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

their experiences related to risk and protection. Our ultimate goal was to provide educators with a deeper understanding of this population and the lessons their life stories offer in terms of supporting others like them in schools.

Method Research Questions 1. What common themes related to risk and resilience emerge within the life stories of UHY who persist in high school? 2. What do the commonalities in the life stories of these students suggest about how to support UHY in schools?

Participants Participants were nine students receiving services from a community-based organization for UHY in a southeastern city of the USA. The organization, to which students were referred by social workers at their respective public high schools, provided adult mentoring, housing, tutoring, social-emotional learning opportunities, and other specific resources as needed (e.g., dental care, clothing for the prom). Students qualified to receive services from the organization based on the following: (1) being an unaccompanied homeless adolescent attending high school with no better options for housing/assistance, (2) demonstrating potential for ending the cycle of homelessness through opportunities offered through the organization, and (3) agreeing to follow the rules of the organization, which include maintaining at least a 2.0 GPA; holding a part-time job and contributing money to living expenses; and consenting to regular drug testing. All participants were UHY who were enrolled in a public high school at the time they began receiving services from the community-based organization, which was 1–2 years prior to their interviews on average. Information on demographics and reasons for homelessness are shown in Table 1. Measure The data collection procedures for this study were designed to give UHY the opportunity to tell their stories in their own words. Upon meeting with the interviewer to participate in an individual interview, participants were given the following prompt: BI would like you to tell me your life story from the time you were born until you began receiving services from [community organization].^ The participants told their stories (typically in chronological order), with the interviewer periodically summarizing what was said and asking clarifying

questions to ensure that participants’ statements were understood. Procedure Following approval of this study by the Institutional Review Board of the University of South Florida, participants were recruited through a study flyer placed in the office of the community-based organization. Students interested in participating contacted the first author’s research assistant. Interviews Individual interviews were held in private rooms at the offices of the community program or at the university where the study took place. Each interview was conducted by a School Psychology doctoral student with 10 years of prior experience as a teacher and counselor. The interviewer was well-versed in qualitative methods and understood that the goal of the interviews was to allow students to tell their stories in their own words. Prior to asking the kick-off question, the interviewer obtained informed consent from the participant and requested demographic information, including age and current grade. The participants chose a pseudonym to be used during the interview. They typically told their life stories in chronological order, noting significant people and events in their lives from early childhood through adolescence. Most told their stories using school grades as temporal markers (e.g., noting where they attended school in fifth grade and important events that occurred during that year). Interviews ranged in length from 30 min to 2 h, with the average interview lasting 90 min. Each was audio-recorded and later transcribed either by a member of the first author’s research team or by a transcription service. All transcriptions were reviewed for accuracy by members of the research team. Participants received a gift card to a local department/grocery store for their participation. Data Analysis Data analysis began with the first author and her research team of School Psychology graduate students simultaneously reading each interview transcription and listening to the audio recording. As the large group reviewed the first transcript, the first author paused the audio recording periodically so the group could discuss their perceptions of the interview (e.g., key events in the student’s life, the student’s emotional tone when discussing different events). The remaining eight transcripts and audio recordings were then reviewed in small groups, with notes being shared and discussed in subsequent research group meetings. The first author reviewed all recordings and transcripts prior to these discussions. Once the group had a sense of the interviews as a whole, the formal coding process began. The first step in this process was both inductive (based on knowledge of the information

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol Table 1

Demographic information for participants

Pseudonym

Gender

Age

Grade at interview

Ethnicity

Reason for homelessness

Alison

Female

17

11th grade

Hispanic American

Escaping abuse

Charlotte

Female

19

College freshman

Caribbean American

Abandonment

Donald Erica

Male Female

19 19

College freshman College freshman

European American European American

Discord with stepparent Escaping abuse

Isaac Lisa

Male Female

19 20

College freshman College freshman

African American European American

Family homelessness Could not afford rent after roommate moved out

Martin

Male

17

11th grade

Caribbean American

Family homelessness

Nathan Robert

Male Male

20 18

College freshman College freshman

African American European American

Parent incarceration Told by parent to leave

students had shared) and deductive (based on important components of adolescents’ lives within models of human development). Thirteen coding categories were selected based on the high frequency with which they were discussed by the participants: (1) maltreatment, (2) mobility, (3) living conditions, (4) school, (5) peers/friends, (6) biological parents, (7) siblings, (8) caregiver problems, (9) health/behavior challenges, (10) conditions of leaving home, (11) strengths/ bright spots in life, (12) ways of making money, and (13) influential adults. Using Atlas TI, the first, fourth, and fifth authors coded each of the transcripts independently, marking segments of text where participants had discussed 1 of the 13 topics listed above and meeting weekly as a group to compare assignment of codes and resolve any differences. The final step in the data analysis process was to identify themes in the data. To do this, we examined the text for each of the 13 topics across all of the students (e.g., all statements where participants were discussing school). We then asked ourselves, BWhen participants are talking about school, what are they saying? What do their statements about school have in common? Are there larger groupings of ideas that cut across topics (e.g., apply to both school and peer/friends)? Once we identified themes, we worked in pairs to highlight the text consistent with each theme in each transcript. This allowed us to examine how often the themes were discussed by each student and to verify the themes we identified were indeed common across participants.

Results The results of our data analysis revealed a total of nine themes, all of which are named and defined in Table 2. In the next sections, we describe each of the themes, providing quotes from our participants to exemplify and clarify the meanings and nuances within the themes. Although we did not impose a particular structure on our themes, we noted that themes 1–6 seem to relate to risk while themes 7–9 are more closely related to resilience.

Theme 1: Shuffled. The first theme we identified was Shuffled. When we first reviewed our participants’ transcripts, we noted the very frequent mobility that all participants experienced throughout their lives. This was a highly salient aspect of childhood for the majority of participants. As an example, the first statement Lisa made to us about her life was: BMy whole life, I jumped back and forth between grandparents, aunts and uncles, my boyfriend, stuff like that.^ She estimated that she had attended at least 25 different schools. Although Lisa’s level of mobility was extreme, all of our participants reported being Shuffled. When we delved deeper into what the participants had to say about their frequent mobility, it became clear their moves were highly related to parental instability. Shuffled involved children being sent to live with someone else because their parents or guardians were unable or uninterested in taking care of them, a process that was sometimes repeated over and over. For example, after Erica’s father committed suicide and her mother had difficulty sustaining stable housing due to mental health problems, Erica and her brother were sent to live with their grandparents. Unfortunately, Erica’s grandmother and her partner also had serious mental health and substance abuse problems, so Erica and her brother were then sent to live with her mother’s exhusband’s brother and his partner. As Erica’s story exemplifies, Shuffled resulted in instability not only in place of residence but also in primary caregivers. As Nathan indicated in his interview, Shuffled was also associated with missed opportunities. In eighth grade, an assistant principal took Nathan under her wing and put him in a program where he was groomed to play football at the local high school. As long as he kept his grades up and stayed out of trouble, he was allowed to attend practices at the high school and Bhang out with^ the current players on the team. Nathan did well in the program. However, because of another family move, he had to attend a different school so he could not realize the goal of playing on that team. Nathan stated: BI was supposed to go to [that high school], but then I moved again. We always moved a lot...I was like, ‘Why do I have to live like this? I didn’t do anything.’^

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol Table 2

Themes in the life stories of unaccompanied homeless adolescents

Theme name

Theme description

Theme 1: Shuffled

No. of participants whose narrative included this theme

Participants experience very frequent residential moves, often because a parent could not take care of them or meet basic family needs. These moves resulted in instability in parenting, schooling, and friendships. Theme 2: Abused Participants experience abuse by caregivers that is physical, sexual, and/or emotional. The pain of abuse sometimes leads to maladaptive coping. Theme 3: Suppressed Participants do not speak up about their abuse because they fear the consequences or have learned that speaking up results in harsher treatment. Theme 4: What is Normal? Participants describe the misconception that normal family life involves chronic turmoil and abuse. Theme 5: Not the Priority Participants describe their caregivers as prioritizing another person (e.g., romantic partner), desire, or vice over meeting the youth’s basic needs. Theme 6: Unmet Basic Needs Participants describe living conditions where basic needs are unmet (e.g., inadequate food, overcrowded living conditions, lack of transportation, unsafe neighborhood). Theme 7: Shouldering Participants care for siblings, earn money for the family, or otherwise take on adult-like Responsibility responsibilities as youth. Theme 8: Saving Graces Participants find people or activities that allow them to experience relief from the overwhelming stress in their lives. Theme 9: Unexpected Wisdom Participants demonstrate remarkable ways of responding to their childhood circumstances and/or see the possibility that they can overcome their challenges to make something more of their lives.

Theme 2: Abused. The second theme we identified was Abused. Eight participants indicated that they had experienced some form of abuse, with all of the girls in the sample noting that they had been sexually abused (most often by a mother’s boyfriend). For example, Charlotte recalled, B[My mother] had a boyfriend...We lived with him...He helped my mom a lot. But...when my mom would go to work, he would start molesting me.^ Alison told a similar story. After her father died in a car accident, she, her mother, and her younger brother lived in various places, including a room in a church and with a friend. When they could no longer stay at the friend’s house, they found a small efficiency. Soon afterward, her mother met a charming man who was perceived by others as Ban angel sent from heaven,^ and they married in less than a month. However, Alison soon became quite uncomfortable with her stepfather’s behavior. She noted: BI always had to kiss him in the mouth. In my culture, we don’t do that. We don’t kiss our kids in the mouth and especially not when they’re like 14...or 15.^ Her stepfather’s behavior soon escalated to higher levels of victimization. Alison described: He would tell me not to go to school...and then in the morning, he would tell me to lay in bed with him and then he would say that he was doing things to get more comfortable with each other. Now I understand that he was sexually abusing me. Alison’s mother eventually decided to leave her stepfather, but they ended up getting back together after others who knew

9

8 4 5 9 9 5 9 9

him through church claimed he had changed. Unfortunately, when Alison, her mother, and her brother returned to his home, things were no better, and she experienced significant physical and emotional abuse. For example, she stated: One day [my stepfather] even started strangling me...my Mom was on top of him screaming for him to stop...but she couldn’t stop him...I begged him to stop many times. Counted to three and said please many times. And he didn’t. So I literally punched him in the jaw, like really hard. That was like the greatest moment ever...I punched him, and he got dizzy...Once I realized what I did, I just like stayed there, then started running but then he caught up to me...literally beat the crap out of me...My ribs were extremely bruised...I had black eyes, one eye was cut...he literally squished my eyes into the socket...and he kicked me on the floor...he bit me, everything. Other students, like Erica, noted significant emotional abuse. She stated: I remember the first day of school they [my mother’s exhusband’s brother and his partner] told me, BDon’t be worried if everyone looks at you like you’re weird cause you look pregnant.^ I was told that I looked like a whore if I wore certain things...Everyday, no matter what I did,...I was called a stupid bitch. Whore was my name more than my actual name was.

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

Theme 3: Suppressed. The third theme we identified was Suppressed. Four participants discussed feeling as though they could not speak up about the abuse they were experiencing because they feared the consequences or had learned that speaking up resulted in harsher treatment. As an example, Charlotte suppressed revealing her stepfather’s abuse in order to preserve her mother’s happiness and well-being, recalling:

experienced in their homes (particularly related to abuse) were atypical. For example, at one point when living with her grandmother and grandmother’s partner, Erica ended up in a psychiatric hospital and then was moved to a shelter. At the shelter, staff explained to her that what she had experienced with her grandmother was not normal. She described this experience as follows:

…I never told my mom but I tried to keep it [a secret] because she was happy. We had everything that we needed to survive so it was like, if I tell her this, then it’s going to break up everything and we’re going to have to find somewhere to live.

I always thought it was normal to get hit, it was normal to have bruises going to school. I thought that was just family life because afterwards they [her grandmother and grandmother’s partner] would be happy and fun… we’d watch American Idol together and sing Melissa Etheridge like a bunch of dorks in the pool... I didn’t think there was anything wrong with it...When I came to the shelter, the first thing they did was sit me down and told me what was happening was wrong, and it kind of shattered my world.

In this case, Charlotte endured the abuse from her mother’s boyfriend because she wanted to protect her mother and knew that if she revealed what was happening to her, there would have been other negative consequences. Erica discussed suppressing PTSD, anxiety, depression, and even physical illness in order to conform to expectations set by her caregivers. Speaking of her mother’s ex-husband’s brother, she noted: Every day…he would ask me how my day was, but it was a rhetorical question…If you [said] anything other than good, he would get angry at you, thinking that you were trying to be dramatic…Even when I was sick…he would say, BOh, you’re just faking it for attention.^ Like I could be puking my brains out in front of him, and he’d just get angry at me, smack me, and send me to school… We [she and her brother] would put smiles on our faces, and we wouldn’t say what had happened that day, and I was going through a lot of bullying at that time…I suppressed it. I smiled [and] said I had a good day. Unlike others who kept their abuse to themselves to avoid further abuse, Isaac reacted to the abuse from his stepfather by Btaking responsibility^ for his actions. Isaac described the intensity of Bwhoopings^ and recalled them leaving visible marks, which led to an inquiry by a social worker at school. Despite these visible signs of abuse, Isaac noted, BWhen the social worker would call us up, and you know, try and do what they do, I would just be like, ‘Nope, I’m fine.’…It was my fault…I take responsibility for me getting whoopings.^ Some participants eventually reported their abuse or started standing up for themselves, but for Alison, it was to no avail. Speaking of revealing her sexual abuse to her mother, Alison stated, BAfter I had told her everything that happened, and literally everything—things that I didn’t tell her before because I was scared…she didn’t believe me.^^ Theme 4: What is Normal? The fourth theme we identified was What is Normal? This theme captured the idea that many participants did not understand that the situations they

Like Erica, Alison also expressed confusion about what was normal. The process by which this happened, however, was somewhat different. At first, Alison thought that what her stepfather was doing (e.g., making her lay in bed with him) was wrong. However, once he told her that her deceased biological father (whom she held in very high regard) had cheated on her mother, she began to question her own sense of reality. She recalled, BOnce he destroyed that image of my dad, I [thought], ‘Well, this is what a dad is supposed to do.’ I mean, my Dad, he never did this, but what if it was just that he wasn’t like that?^ Theme 5: Not the Priority. The fifth theme we identified was Not the Priority. This theme captured participants’ perceptions that their parents often prioritized other people, desires, or vices over meeting their children’s basic needs. As an example, Nathan, who seemed to have a good relationship with his mother, noted that he was bothered by his mother’s tendency to prioritize romantic relationships above her children’s safety. He stated: The only thing about my mom that bothers me is when she falls in love, she falls in love hard. I feel like she put the dude before her kids sometimes. To me, it didn’t bother me because I got to a point where I was only like 15, 16, but I feel like I was grown because of the stuff I was doing in the streets and everything I have [witnessed]. My little brother was like five or four, and I hate seeing my little brother mistreated. It always just bothered me. Robert shared a similar story of having a parent prioritize another person over him. When Robert was 16, his father, who was divorced from Robert’s mother, told him that he had met a woman and that he wanted her to move into their home.

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

Robert, who had never met this woman, was uncomfortable with this idea. When he shared his reticence with his father, his father got angry and told Robert he needed to leave. Robert then moved in with his father’s best friend. Speaking of his father, Robert noted, B[he] didn’t try and stop me from leaving… [he] chose his woman over me, and that was pretty much when I was done living with my dad... It sucked.^ In addition to prioritizing a romantic partner, participants also noted situations where drugs and alcohol consumed their parents in a way that did not allow children to be prioritized. For example, Lisa shared that her mother abused drugs, and as a result, she did not see her very often. Lisa described her mother’s behavior as follows: BShe was a party girl...she would drop us at our aunt’s, and sometimes she’d say she’d come back the next day, [then] she’d be gone for two to three weeks...^ Theme 6: Unmet Basic Needs The sixth theme we identified was Unmet Basic Needs. All participants described uncomfortable living conditions, including overcrowded housing, food insufficiency, and poor transportation. For Martin, unmet basic needs centered around problems with food insufficiency and transportation. Martin estimated he once missed half a year of school because of inadequate transportation. Martin also discussed how he often would only have one meal per day. He stated: My mom started struggling with us to the point where we couldn’t have breakfast, lunch, but we was able to eat dinner everyday though. So we was able to eat sometimes, sometimes we wasn’t able to eat, sometimes there was nothing to eat. For Charlotte and Nathan, unmet basic needs were related to living with friends in overcrowded households. Charlotte noted that when she, her mother, and her sister went to live with a friend, there were 14 people living in a two-bedroom apartment. Similarly, Nathan recalled living with 12 people in a three-bedroom house. He also described how he took turns sleeping on the couch or floor when he lived in a one-bedroom apartment with his mother, his younger brother, and his mother’s friend. Another concern for Nathan was the violence he witnessed in the neighborhoods where he lived. In some of these neighborhoods, he noted, B[I] remember we used to have to sleep on the floor at night because they would come shooting in our apartments every night. Every night they are fighting and shooting.^ Theme 7: Shouldering Responsibility. The seventh theme we identified was Shouldering Responsibility. Five participants indicated that they took on adult-like responsibilities as youth such as providing care for siblings or earning money for the family. For example, Lisa described having to work as a teenager to support her family financially. She shared:

[My Mom] lost her job, and then she [tried] to get money from me…she was like BHey, you’re working, help me out^…[I] had to pay water, and then electric and food, and I had to help my mom with insurance…I was doing four, maybe five hundred dollar paychecks, making minimum wage. Some participants also demonstrated Shouldering Responsibility by caring for siblings. For example, Erica described taking on the role of a parent for her brother who was living in a group home, noting: His violent tendencies would get him in trouble at school…[our caregivers] wouldn’t answer the phone… they didn’t want to have to deal with it…instead, I was usually called as the parent into parent-teacher conferences and with the principal. If something happened, I would be called out of class and I would go down to comfort [my brother], talk to the guidance counselor [or] the vice principal. Theme 8: Saving Graces. The eighth theme we identified was Saving Graces. All participants noted respite from the overwhelming stress they experienced in their lives through Saving Graces. These Saving Graces were (1) people who gave the participants a place to live or helped with basic needs and/or (2) activities such as extracurricular pursuits or after-school jobs. As an example, Martin described how there was a man who drove a bus from his school back to his neighborhood, which saved Martin from having to walk 10 miles. Martin described, B...my mom talked to him and he was like ‘Okay, I’ll bring them home, and whenever you get some money, just pay me,’ so that was alright.^ Isaac’s Saving Grace was his basketball coach. After the team had won many games, the Bstate^ found out that Isaac was living with his coach. Isaac noted the ramifications for his coach of this conflict of interest, but his coach decided to prioritize Isaac’s well-being: It was really, really bad because he was my basketball coach and I’m living with him as a student…which didn’t really go so well with the state and so…we were under investigation…we were in jeopardy of losing like, like losing so many games…But my coach …wasn’t helping me out for basketball. He was helping me out because I needed help…So he said, BTo hell with that. If they want to take away all these games, it doesn’t matter…^ In addition to his coach, Isaac discussed the significance of sports as a Saving Grace throughout his life. He noted the social importance of playing football throughout his

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

childhood and adolescence, remembering, B…a lot of my friendships were built through football...^ While Isaac discussed the importance of sports for its social implications, Nathan attributed his increase in class performance and grades to sports:

BI know a little bit more of the law...Give me an eviction notice. Give me that paper...I’ll take it to my guidance counselor...This eviction paper notice, something official, is going to open doors that would not be open otherwise.^

For me, if I can find something to keep myself occupied, it keeps me out of trouble. Before…I wasn’t playing any sports. I would come right home after school, and I would just be with my friends. Just be in the streets. When I started playing a little flag football, I had to stay after school for practice and stuff like that. I wanted to keep doing it.

Donald’s approach to this situation reflects a notable savviness regarding how to advocate for himself. He knew that if he had an official eviction notice as a minor, he could harness support from a local agency to become established in another living situation.

Discussion Theme 9: Unexpected Wisdom. The final theme we identified was Unexpected Wisdom. This theme captured the idea that almost all participants demonstrated what we considered to be remarkable ways of responding to their childhood circumstances, including mature thinking, adaptive coping strategies, and the belief that they could overcome their early circumstances by focusing on education. For example, Isaac shared that he had a stepfather whom his Mom had married when he was three. Isaac recalled that his stepfather had given him Bwhoopins...mainly physical stuff, but at the time it hurt because [I] was a little kid.^ In describing this experience, however, Isaac was hesitant to refer to the physical punishment as abuse or to be critical of his stepfather. Rather, he stated, BI won’t fault him for it because he was young, and my Mom already had three kids at that time. It’s just something that happened.^ Isaac’s maturity in how he viewed this situation was notable to us. Lisa provided another example of Unexpected Wisdom. Lisa’s mother had several partners throughout Lisa’s childhood. She described how she coped with one of these men as follows: BWhen she was with him, that’s when I couldn't handle it anymore. I started working and going to school. I stayed in school. I knew if I quit school, I wouldn’t go anywhere in life.^ Lisa’s behavior in this situation reflects a strong sense of self-determination. She recognized that she was living in a situation that she could no longer tolerate, so she took it upon herself to find a way out. In the short-term, this meant finding a job through which she could earn enough money to afford an apartment with a friend. However, Lisa balanced her short-term need to get out of her home with her long-term goal to stay in school so that she could improve her future options through education. Donald also experienced conflict with a parent’s significant other. In this case, it was his father’s girlfriend with whom they lived. She did not like Donald, and they had frequent arguments in which she threatened to evict him. Donald finally asked her for an official eviction notice. He told her:

The goal of this study was to develop a deeper understanding of the life stories of UHY who persisted in school despite being unaccompanied and homeless. A qualitative approach was selected to allow participants to share their life stories in their own words. Our goal was to discover common themes in the spontaneous stories of these adolescents, with a particular focus on how these themes could be used to inform support for UHY in schools. Life Experiences of Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Who Remained in School Overall, the risk factors experienced by the students who participated in this study were similar to those that have been described among UHY more generally (e.g., Tyler and Schmitz 2013). All of our participants described childhoods marked by chronic turmoil, including frequent mobility, abuse, and unmet basic needs. When they described their caregivers, even if they expressed affection or love toward them, they also noted their limitations as parents, including prioritizing other people or vices over their children. Our participants’ perceptions of Bnormal family life^ were often distorted, and several told us that they purposely suppressed their pain even when directly asked about it due to fear of making things worse. When discussing school, a topic included by all participants in telling their life stories, they spoke of (a) frequent school changes, (b) school personnel (i.e., teachers, administrators, coaches) who functioned as saving graces for them, and/or (c) school personnel who understood very little about their situations. Although our focus was not on gender differences, we did note that girls tended to have internalizing concerns and flew under the radar at school more than boys, who had more externalizing concerns that got them into trouble and made their struggles more visible. The themes we identified related to resilience suggest that both internal (e.g., taking responsibility, using talents) and external (e.g., help from others) factors allowed these youth to remain in school. They also saw education as a way out of their current

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

life circumstances, causing them to persist in school even without a clear path toward their future goals. Implications for School-Based Practice In reflecting on our findings, the stories shared with us by our participants suggest a number of ways that schools can support UHY, including establishing systems of adult and peer support and creating trauma-sensitive learning environments. Providing Adult Supports at School First, it is important for school personnel to understand that UHY often have no adults on whom they can truly depend for support. Even if they are living with friends or relatives, their Bhome^ lives are often chaotic and include overcrowded apartments with no (or few) appropriate role models. As such, these youth must be on the radar of teachers, administrators, and student support personnel in schools, all of whom need to have a clear understanding of the challenges faced by these youth. Because of the McKinney-Vento Act, when a student registers at a public school, he/she must answer questions regarding homelessness. Therefore, schools should know who these students are and be proactive in offering both additional academic and mental health supports. Moreover, given the frequency of school transitions among this population, mentoring programs should be in place to facilitate connections with adults at their current school. None of the students in this study noted they had received this type of support. Some participants credited teachers or coaches who believed in them with allowing them to remain in school prior to receiving support from the community-based organization from which they were recruited for this study. These natural mentoring relationships (see Dang & Miller 2013) are a good start, but more formalized mentoring programs are needed to address the academic and mental health needs of this population. Providing Opportunities for Building Connections and Strengths Recognizing the frequency with which students in the current study experienced neighborhood and school changes, it also is important for school personnel to find ways to allow UHY to connect with peers at their current school. This may be in the form of peer mentoring programs, buddy systems, or extracurricular activities. In creating a supportive environment, schools should aim to foster relationship permanence and attachment (Smithgall et al. 2013). Creating Trauma-Sensitive Learning Environments Like other researchers, we found that the lives of UHY, even those who persist in school, are marked by abuse and other forms of trauma. Establishing trauma-sensitive learning environments is an important step in meeting the needs of this population. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recommends adherence to four

key assumptions and six key principles when building a trauma-informed climate. The key assumptions of a traumainformed environment include school staff realizing the impact of trauma, recognizing traumatic stress responses in children, responding to trauma in a manner that communicates safety and calmness, and resisting re-traumatizing the child (SAMHSA 2014). The principles of a trauma-informed school include promoting physically and psychologically safe environments, developing a sense of trustworthiness with students by being transparent, providing students with a peer support group to normalize the experience of trauma and provide hope and expectancy for change, prioritizing students who have experienced trauma for positive adult mentorship, empowering students through a strengths-based approach by giving them voice and choice in their education, and implementing interventions that are sensitive to students’ gender and culture (SAMHSA 2014). To realize the recommendations provided by SAMHSA, schools can engage in a number of Tier 1 practices to foster a trauma-sensitive environment. Importantly, safety should be established by clear and predictable routines wherein students are informed of any out-of-the-ordinary changes to daily routines that might serve as Btrauma triggers^ (e.g., fire drills; National Child Traumatic Stress Network 2008). If a student seems to be going through a particularly challenging time, it may be helpful to allow the student set up a plan for a Bgraceful exit^ (Packer and Pruitt 2010) from the classroom or to go to a Bcalm zone^ established in the classroom (Evers n.d.). In addition, clear behavioral guidelines should be established for all children through a system of school-wide positive behavior supports (Chafouleas et al. 2016). Finally, schools should consider implementing class-wide social-emotional learning (SEL) curricula such as MindUP or Second Step to promote resilience and positive coping strategies (Chafouleas et al. 2016; Dorado et al. 2016). Notably, some students in the current study reported not understanding that the abuse they experienced was atypical. This suggests a need for psychoeducation regarding issues like healthy relationships (e.g., The Fourth R; Wolfe et al. 2009) and adaptive coping (e.g., The Best of Coping; Frydenberg and Brandon 2007), which are often included in SEL programs. The Heart of Learning and Teaching (Wolpow et al. 2016) is one particularly notable trauma-informed initiative espoused by schools in the state of Washington. The purpose of this initiative is to train teachers in trauma-informed care by providing psychoeducation about trauma and traumainformed strategies. The Heart of Learning and Teaching also includes a parent training component to foster continuity across both home and school environments. Another leader in trauma-informed schools is the state of Massachusetts, where systems change has been advocated both in schools and at the legislative level. School-based service delivery is conceptualized according to six elements in Massachusetts:

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

leadership, professional development, access to resources and services, academic and non-academic strategies, policies and protocols, and collaboration with families (Cole et al. 2005). These initiatives are promising examples of effective implementation of trauma-informed care as a school-wide practice. Helping Students Access Trauma-Informed Mental Health Care Although the students in this study demonstrated remarkable resilience despite their circumstances, several described experiencing depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. Our findings suggest that it is important for school staff to be attuned to the possibility of internalizing problems among these youth, especially since these problems are less likely to come to the direct attention of student support personnel because they often do not result in office discipline referrals. As an example, one of the students in the current study told us that none of her teachers knew she was engaging in self-injurious behaviors (e.g., choking herself) to cope with PTSD. This story and the stories of others in our study suggest that UHY should be screened for mental health concerns and provided with trauma-informed interventions as needed. Some schools may have staff with the skills to provide these services; others may need to work with service providers in the local community to ensure access to appropriate care. Students who experience pervasive academic, behavioral, and social-emotional concerns as a result of trauma should be prioritized for Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports. Specific interventions that may be beneficial for these students include Bounce Back (Langley et al. 2015), the Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (Jaycox 2004), the Grief and Trauma Intervention for Children (Salloum 2015), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (Cohen et al. 2006), and MATCH-ADTC (Chorpita and Weisz 2009). In addition, youth experiencing trauma should be prioritized for mentoring with an adult at school (SAMHSA 2014). Mentors provide youth with a sense of safety and trust within the school environment, which can improve academic, behavioral, and social-emotional functioning (National Child Traumatic Stress Network 2008). Table 3 outlines a brief tiered model of supports for UHY and/or traumatized youth. This is not a comprehensive model but rather suggestions to help foster a trauma-informed learning environment. Limitations Several limitations of this study must be noted. First, given the nature of our recruitment procedure, we only interviewed students who were no longer living in the highly challenging circumstances of their childhoods. As such, it is possible that the life stories shared with us by these participants were influenced by the fact that they had received significant assistance. For example, the findings we described as Unexpected Wisdom may not have emerged if our participants were still

Table 3

Tiered model of trauma-informed service delivery

Tier

Recommended strategies and social-emotional interventions

Tier 1

• Psychoeducation regarding healthy relationships and adaptive coping • Predictable routines • BGraceful exit^ or calm zones in the classroom • Clear behavioral guidelines established through school-wide PBIS • Class-wide social-emotional learning (e.g., MindUP, Second Step)

Tier 2

• Bounce Back • Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools • Adult mentoring, peer mentoring, buddy systems

Tier 3

• Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy • Grief and Trauma Intervention for Children • MATCH-ADTC

mired in the day-to-day struggles that they experienced prior to receiving assistance from the community-based organization. Another limitation related to our data collection procedure was that we purposely asked an open-ended question and allowed participants to tell their stories with only periodic summarizing and questioning for clarification of ideas. This meant that some students who were quite vocal (e.g., Erica, Alison) spoke for much longer periods of time than other students (e.g., Martin). This variability in the amount of data collected may have influenced the findings of the study to be more representative of some participants’ experiences than others’. Finally, the community organization from which we recruited participants only contracts with about 25% of those who apply for services, and those who are admitted must show potential for success. Thus, it may be that our participants are more resilient than the average UHY who persists in school. As such, the themes we noted related to resilience in particular will need to be confirmed in future research. Directions for Future Research The results of this study provide evidence of resilience in the face of significant risk among UHY who remain in high school. However, much remains to be learned about how that resilience develops. In particular, future research should focus more specifically on how UHY develop agency and positivity. One of our participants (Alison) spoke of religion, but others did not mention religion or spirituality as the source of their strength. Future research also should examine the efficacy of schoolbased supports and services for UHY. This is a considerable undertaking, as little research has been conducted in this area. Working with the information provided in this study, interventions that seem to hold promise are trauma-informed learning

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol

environments/mental health services, mentoring programs, and initiatives to increase peer support and connectedness.

Conclusion The objective of this study was to understand the common life experiences of UHY who remained in high school. Asked to tell their life stories in individual interviews, participants described chronic family turbulence and chaos wherein they were often unprotected from physical and emotional harm. It was their own initiative, responsibility, and wisdom as well as the people and activities they identified as saving graces that allowed them to survive and find their way into a community program where they could access the higher levels of support needed to attain their future goals. Their life descriptions offer many insights into how school personnel can support them. Taking a trauma-informed approach to working with this population (including addressing unresolved trauma through mental health interventions) and understanding that these youth need to build supportive connections with adults and peers can promote resilience among youth who have been placed at extreme risk. Although the findings of this study will not generalize to all UHY, our work demonstrates that UHY who persist in school do not necessarily experience fewer environmental risk factors than UHY more generally. Serving these students well means recognizing this high level of risk and putting into place supports and services that offer protection and promote resilience. Acknowledgements The authors wish to thank members of the Vulnerable and At-Risk Students: Improving Trajectories for Youth (VARSITY) research group, particularly Stacey Mulrenin, Amira Mattison, Camille Randle, Nycole Kauk, Yu Hin Lam, Camille Hanks, Rachel Gormley, and Sheena Hera, for their contributions to this work. Compliance with Ethical Standards Ethical Approval All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed Consent Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

References Aratani, Y. (2009). Homeless children and youth: causes and consequences. New York: National Center for Children in Poverty Retrieved from http://www.nccp.org/publications/pdf/text_888.pdf. Aratani, Y., & Cooper, J. L. (2015). The effect of runaway-homeless episodes on high school dropout. Youth Society, 47(2), 173–198.

Aviles de Bradley, A. M. (2011). Unaccompanied homeless youth: intersections of homelessness, school experiences, and educational policy. Child and Youth Services, 32(2), 155–172. Buckner, J. C., Bassuk, E. L., Weinreb, L. F., & Brooks, M. G. (1999). Homelessness and its relation to the mental health and behavior of low-income school-age children. Developmental Psychology, 35(1), 246–257. Carlson, B. E., Cacciatore, J., & Klimek, B. (2012). A risk and resilience perspective on unaccompanied refugee minors. Social Work, 57(3), 259–269. Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 8, 144–162. Chorpita, B.F & Weisz, J.R. (2009). MATCH-ADTC: Modular Approach to Therapy for Children with Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, or Conduct Problems. Satellite Beach, FL: Practicewise. Cohen, J. A., Mannarino, A. P., & Deblinger, E. (2006). Treating trauma and traumatic grief in children and adolescents. New York: Guilford Press. Cole, S. F., O’Brien, J. G., Gadd, M. G., Ristuccia, J., Wallace, D. L., & Gregory, M. (2005). Helping traumatized children learn: supportive school environments for children traumatized by family violence. In Helping traumatized children learn: Supportive school environments for children traumatized by family violence. Boston: Massachusetts Advocates for Children. http://www.massadvocates. org/documents/HTCL_9-09.pdf Dang, M. T., & Miller, E. (2013). Characteristics of natural mentoring relationships from the perspectives of homeless youth. Journal of Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 26(4), 246–253. Dorado, J. S., Martinez, M., McArthur, L. E., & Leibovitz, T. (2016). Healthy environments and response to trauma in schools (HEARTS): a whole-school, multi-level, prevention and intervention program for creating trauma-informed, safe and supportive schools. School Mental Health, 8(1), 163–176. Evers, T. (n.d.). Using Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports (PBIS) to help schools become more trauma-sensitive. Retrieved from http://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/sspw/pdf/ mhtraumausingpbis.pdf. Frydenberg, E., & Brandon, C. (2007). The best of coping: developing coping skills for adolescents. Camberwell: ACER Press. Jaycox, L. H. (2004). CBITS: cognitive behavioral intervention for trauma in schools. Longmont: Sopris West. Langley, A. K., Gonzalez, A., Sugar, C. A., Solis, D., & Jaycox, L. (2015). Bounce Back: effectiveness of an elementary school-based intervention for multicultural children exposed to traumatic events. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 83(5), 853–865. McManus, H. H., & Thompson, S. J. (2008). Trauma among unaccompanied youth: the integration of street culture into a model of intervention. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment and Trauma, 16(1), 92–109. National Center for Homeless Education. (2002). Who is homeless? Greensboro, NC: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from: https://nche.ed.gov/downloads/briefs/who_is_homeless.pdf National Center for Homeless Education. (2014a). Children and youth experiencing homelessness: an introduction to the issues. Greensboro: U.S. Department of Education Retrieved from http:// center.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/introduction.pdf. National Center for Homeless Education. (2014b). Education for homeless children and youth consolidated state performance report data: school years 2010–11, 2011–12, and 2012–13. Greensboro: U.S. Department of Education Retrieved from http://center.serve.org/ nche/downloads/data-comp-1011-1213.pdf. National Child Traumatic Stress Network Schools Committee. (2008). Child trauma toolkit for educators. Los Angeles: National Center for Child Traumatic Stress.

Author's personal copy Contemp School Psychol Noell, J., Rohde, P., Ochs, L., Tovanoff, P., Alter, M., Schmid, S., Bullard, J., & Black, C. (2001). Incidence and prevalence of chlamydia, herpes, and viral hepatitis in a homeless adolescent population. Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 28(1), 4–10. Packer, L., & Pruitt, S. (2010). Challenging kids, challenged teachers: teaching students with Tourette’s, bipolar disorder, executive dysfunction, OCD, ADHD, and more. Bethesda: Woodbine House. Raghallaigh, M. N., & Gilligan, R. (2010). Active survival in the lives of unaccompanied minors: coping strategies, resilience, and the relevance of religion. Child and Family Social Work, 15, 226–237. Salloum, A. (2015). Grief and trauma in children: an evidence-based treatment manual. New York: Routledge. Smithgall, C., Cusick, G., & Griffin, G. (2013). Responding to students affected by trauma: collaboration across public systems. Family Court Review, 51(3), 401–408. Stewart, A. J., Steiman, M., Cauce, A. M., Cochran, B. N., Whitbeck, L. B., & Hoyt, D. R. (2004). Victimization and posttraumatic stress disorder among homeless adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 43(3), 325–331. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach. (HHS publication no. SMA 14–4884). Rockville: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Toolis, E. E., & Hammack, P. L. (2015). The lived experiences of homeless youth: a narrative approach. Qualitative Psychology, 2(1), 50– 68. Tyler, K. A. (2006). A qualitative study of early family histories and transitions of homeless youth. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 21(10), 1385–1393. Tyler, K. A., & Schmitz, R. M. (2013). Family histories and multiple transitions among homeless young adults: pathways to homelessness. Children and Youth Services Review, 35, 1719–1726. Weinreb, L., Goldberg, R., Bassuck, E., & Perloff, J. (1998). Determinants of health and service use patterns in homeless and low-income housed children. Pediatrics, 102(3), 554–562. Whitbeck, L. B., Hoyt, D. R., Johnson, K., & Chen, X. (2007). Victimization and posttraumatic stress disorder among runaway and homeless adolescents. Violence and Victims, 22(6), 721–734.

Williams, N. R., Lindsey, E. W., Kurtz, D., & Jarvis, S. (2001). From trauma to resiliency: lessons from former runaway and homeless youth. Journal of Youth Studies, 4(2), 233–253. Wolfe, D. A., Crooks, C. V., Jaffe, P., Chiodo, D., Hughes, R., Ellis, W., Stitt, L., & Donner, A. (2009). A universal school-based program to prevent adolescent dating violence: a cluster randomized trial. Archives of Pediatric Adolescent Medicine, 163, 692–699. Wolpow, R., Johnson, M. M., Hertel, R., & Kincaid, S. O. (2016). The heart of learning and teaching: compassion, resiliency, and academic stress. Retrieved from http://www.k12.wa.us/compassionateschools/ pubdocs/TheHeartofLearningandTeaching.pdf. Wynne, M. E., & Ausikaitis, A. E. (2013). Addressing the educational needs of homeless students. NASP Communiqué, 42(2), 4–6.

Linda M. Raffaele Mendez is an Associate Professor in the School Psychology Program at the University of South Florida. Her research is focused on improving life outcomes for vulnerable and at risk youth. Sarah Dickinson MA, is a doctoral candidate in the School Psychology Program at the University of South Florida. She is currently completing a mental health externship in the School District of Hillsborough County (FL). Her research interests include trauma-informed systems of care and behavioral supports for youth placed at risk. Emily Esposito MA, is a doctoral candidate in the School Psychology Program at the University of South Florida. She is currently completing her internship with PSI Solutions in Toledo, OH. Her research interests include interventions to promote mental health among homeless youth Justine Connolly EdS, is a doctoral candidate at the University of South Florida. She is employed by Pasco County (FL) Schools as a school psychologist. Her research interests include youth placed at risk, particularly those in the juvenile justice system. Leah Bonilla MA is a doctoral student in the School Psychology Program at the University of South Florida. She is currently completing her internship in Pasco County (FL) Schools. Her research interests include ethnic identity and school belonging among high school students, particularly those placed at risk.