Viewing Student Parent Homelessness through an Equity Lens

Imagine this scene: as the sun sets on a community college campus, a young mom gathers her textbooks, picks up her giggling toddler from daycare, and walks hand-in-hand to her Honda Odyssey. She chats softly with her child about their day, forcing a smile as she unlocks the door. Once inside, she carefully arranges blankets in the backseat, trying to make the cramped space feel a little more like home. Stories like hers are far too common among the roughly 213,900 parenting college students who are experiencing homelessness.

Yet, this crisis doesn’t impact all parenting students equally. According to data from the Department of Education’s National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS), Black and Latino student parents experience homelessness at greater rates than the overall undergraduate population. These disparities reflect the compounded effects of systemic inequities, including structural barriers that have long hindered equal access to economic opportunities and educational success.

As we showed in the first blog in this series, homelessness impacts parenting students’ ability to focus on their studies and secure other basic needs, making it less likely they complete their degrees and achieve economic security for their families. And each of the 213,900 homeless parenting students represents not just the students, but also one or more homeless children, as well as partners and spouses. To tackle this issue effectively, we must look beyond the data and examine the inequities that fuel it, including the overlooked challenges faced by student fathers.

Student homelessness is partly driven by the ongoing housing affordability crisis. As housing costs rise faster than tuition, it becomes increasingly challenging for students to maintain a roof over their heads. Parenting students are particularly vulnerable to the high cost of housing, as having children often makes affordable housing harder to find. The need for larger living spaces and the difficulty of sharing housing with roommates complicate the situation further. While these challenges impact all parenting students, they are especially pronounced for minoritized students who must also navigate additional barriers.

How Systemic Racism Fuels Homelessness for Parenting Students

Homelessness rates among parenting students are concerning across all racial and ethnic groups, but certain populations experience particularly high rates. Black and Latino student parents face exceptionally high risks of homelessness, above the overall rate of 6.9% for all undergraduate student parents. These disparities highlight how systemic racism creates and reinforces structural barriers that compound the housing challenges we see facing parenting students.

For Black student parents, the roots of housing instability can be traced back to exclusionary housing policies like redlining and discriminatory zoning laws that systematically denied Black families access to homeownership and economic opportunities. These policies contributed to racial wealth gaps that research from the Urban Institute shows are some of the highest in the world. Today, the impact of these systemic barriers persists, which can leave Black student parents more vulnerable to basic needs insecurity like homelessness when an unexpected financial crisis strikes.

Hispanic or Latino student parents also face numerous systemic challenges. Many Hispanic/Latino parents with low incomes work in industries such as leisure and hospitality, retail, and construction. These sectors often lack benefits or workplace flexibility, making it challenging to balance work, child care, and education. In addition, fear of legal repercussions related to immigration status, lack of knowledge about tenant rights, and limited access to public benefits can make it harder for Hispanic/Latino families to secure stable housing, which can contribute to higher rates of homelessness.

Addressing these disparities requires systemic policy solutions that confront not only the issue of homelessness among parenting students in the short term but also its root causes. By tackling these structural issues head-on, we can reduce homelessness and foster a more equitable environment where student parents, regardless of their race or ethnicity, have the opportunity to succeed academically and build a secure future for their families.

Including Student Fathers in the Homelessness Discussion

Student mothers are often at the center of policy discussions on student parents, and rightfully so, as they make up 74% of the 3.14 million undergraduate student parents. However, the NPSAS data makes clear that conversations about homelessness among parenting students must also include student fathers, who make up 25% of this population and experience nearly the same rate of homelessness as their female peers.

According to the EmpowerED Dads report from Generation Hope, student fathers often navigate college unseen and overlooked in higher education policy and institutional support despite facing significant financial and caregiving challenges.The report highlights that 61% of student fathers stop out of college before earning their degrees, compared to 48% of student mothers, and that Black and Hispanic/Latino student fathers face even higher stop-out rates at 72% and 66%, respectively. Without access to stable housing and targeted support, many fathers are forced to take on additional work hours, reducing the time and energy they can dedicate to their studies.

Expanding the conversation around homelessness among parenting students doesn’t mean shifting focus away from student mothers; it means ensuring that all parenting students, regardless of gender, can access the resources they need. Marketing of parenting student supports is often designed with student mothers in mind, reinforcing gaps in support for fathers who may not be seen as primary caregivers. Addressing these gaps through targeted outreach and housing assistance can help ensure that student fathers are not left behind.

Removing Barriers to Support Parenting Students

The disparities in homelessness among parenting students highlight the urgent need to understand how race, ethnicity, and gender intersect with the challenges of pursuing higher education. To make lasting progress, we must not only address the immediate needs of parenting students experiencing homelessness but also dismantle the structural barriers that perpetuate these inequities.

Policymakers and institutions must work together to build comprehensive, equitable support systems that recognize the diverse experiences of all student parents. This means expanding access to affordable housing, child care, and targeted support services that acknowledge the caregiving roles of both mothers and fathers. Addressing homelessness among parenting students is not just about helping individuals, it’s about ensuring that higher education remains a true pathway to opportunity, regardless of gender, race, or background.