Thousands of students across LA face homelessness as new school year starts

As a new school year begins, thousands of students across Los Angeles are facing a crisis you can't see inside the classroom. They are homeless.

The number of students without a stable place to sleep is rising, leaving many families wondering where they will spend the night, let alone get to school.

For Jessica Gaytan and her 11-year-old twin daughters, a park in Burbank isn't just a place to play; it's also a place to sleep.

She's been homeless since last April when she lost her home and then her job.

"It's really hard because I feel like their emotions are like catching up as well, because they don't know how to express themselves on how they feel," Gaytan said about her daughters. "Because they've never been in this situation because mommy's always worked. I've always had a home."

As the new school year begins, she can't enroll her children because she doesn't know where they'll be living. She says it's been hard to find housing.

"All the shelters are just being constantly filled with multiple people," Gaytan said. "I'm at the bottom of the list right now."

Gaytan's story is heartbreaking, but it's far from rare.

Ivette Cortes knows that uncertainty all too well. She was once homeless herself with three kids when she came to California three years ago.

Then she found permanent, subsidized housing through Housing Works for California in Sun Valley, where 40 school-aged children now live in the same apartment building.

Housing Works Deputy Executive Director Robert Morrison says their Housing First model is working.

"98 percent of our people that we house stay housed at one year, 96 at three years," he said.

But Morrison says state and federal budget cuts are threatening these vital resources.

Los Angeles Unified School District alone identified more than 18,000 students as homeless. District leaders say the true number is likely much higher, as many never report they are without a place to live.

A recent UCLA study found student homelessness in Los Angeles County jumped to almost 30% between the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years. One in three are in high school.

For Gaytan, her hope is simple: a stable home before the school bell rings.

"I miss cooking for them, but I'm trying," she says. 'I just pray everything goes well, and we'll find a home soon."