18-05-2025
The number of homeless students rising fast in Thurston County's urban districts
The number of homeless students attending North Thurston Public Schools, the largest school district in Thurston County, has risen to more than 1,000, nearly twice as many as the district reported in 2021.
The increase can be partly attributed to the district doing a better job of identifying students who qualify for services under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, but there's also a too-familiar culprit: the cost of housing and the lack of affordable housing in the area.
Amanda Yonker, who works with homeless students as a River Ridge High School student navigator, delivered those sobering comments at a recent joint meeting of the NTPS school board and Lacey City Council.
'There's a lack of affordable housing, and there is a continuous rise in rental prices,' Yonker told those gathered at River Ridge High School last Tuesday. 'So time and time again, we're seeing families, two-income families, that cannot afford the rent because it continues to go up.'
Some of those families are still feeling the effects of the pandemic, a time when some families lost their housing, which forced them to double up with others, she said. As a result, their credit took a hit and now some people won't rent to them.
Thurston County is an expensive place to live. The median price of a single-family home was $540,000 in April, according to Northwest Multiple Listing Service data, and average rents in the county last year were $1,592, Thurston Regional Planning Council data show.
Yonker told those at the meeting that the district has 1,024 homeless students, up from 556 in 2021. Of that larger total, more than 800 students have doubled up to live with someone else, while close to 200 are considered unaccompanied.
Although the numbers have increased since 2021, the year-over-year period has been stable, she said. However, the number of homeless high school students has climbed from 136 in 2023 to 351 this year.
'We define homelessness as those who are without fixed, adequate or regular nighttime residency,' Yonker said. That is the definition under the federal McKinney-Vento Act.
'This can look like students who are living in tents, or in their cars, or on the street,' she said. 'It can also look like being in an RV, or couch surfing, or living with your family, but perhaps your family is living with another family, and their name is not on the lease. You can also be living with your grandparents or another family member who's raising you, but they are not your legal guardian.'
Olympia and Tumwater school districts also have seen dramatic increases in their student homeless population since 2021, according to data shared with The Olympian.
Since the 2021-22 school year, the Olympia School District has seen an increase of 85 students experiencing homelessness, with 285 identified for the 2024-25 school year, spokesman Conor Schober said.
'Stigma around being unhoused continues to make self-identification a challenge for many families,' he said.
Housing — the cost or availability of it — is among the contributing factors to higher homelessness in Olympia schools, he said.
'There has been a noticeable rise in families relying on motels or hotels when financially possible, as well as a sharp increase in evictions due to unaffordable rent, unpaid balances or occupancy violations,' Schober said.
Tumwater, too, has seen a rise in its homeless student population, increasing from 159 in the 2021-22 school year to 225 this school year.
'We have found that lack of affordable housing is a significant factor,' spokeswoman Laurie Wiedenmeyer said. 'We have families with HUD vouchers to help with rent, yet some have had them for two years and are still waiting for housing.'
Yonker's comments at Tuesday's meeting prompted Lacey Mayor Andy Ryder to seek an update about a low-income, city-initiated housing project that has been proposed across from Komachin Middle School at College Street and Mullen Road.
'We reached a purchase and sale agreement with the LOTT Clean Water Alliance (the owners of the property), and we're almost complete with the due diligence period,' said Lacey City Manager Rick Walk.
Walk said the authorization for the purchase and sale agreement is expected to come before the council in June.
'We've been talking with the Thurston County Housing Authority about doing a multi-generational, low-income type of project there that would serve both low-income seniors as well as low-income families, targeting school-age families,' he said.
Once authorized by the council, the next step would be to formulate a memorandum of understanding with whatever partner wants to step up and move that project forward, Walk said.
The proposal has called for cottage-style housing that would be developed over two phases, totaling 60-80 units, he said.
Despite the challenges of being homeless, a range of services are available to those students, Yonker said.
For example, North Thurston has the Family Youth Resource Center, which is near North Thurston High School. It's a place where students can get clothes and hygiene products, touch base with community partners about benefits and health insurance, or take advantage of coordinated entry services to find housing, Yonker said.
Tumwater, too, has a similar arrangement.
'We are grateful for our Community Schools Managers that are housed in our schools,' Wiedenmeyer said. 'Each of the CS Managers has a dedicated work area in their assigned school that is stocked with food, hygiene supplies, and more, and students know they are able to stop by any time if they are hungry or need assistance with essential resources.'
Yonker said these students do move on and succeed.
'These kids are going to school,' she said. 'They're going to college. They're doing amazing things, which is fantastic because we know that the chance of homelessness rises 4.5% if kids leave high school without a high school diploma or a GED.'
Site near Komachin Middle School could get affordable housing. Here's how it would work
