McKinney-Vento Act and Maryland School Enrollment for Kinship Caregivers

When a child moves in with a grandparent or relative because of a family crisis, two separate laws may apply to school enrollment: Maryland's informal kinship care affidavit and the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. They are not interchangeable, and knowing which one fits your situation matters.

Kinship Affidavit vs. McKinney-Vento

The informal kinship care affidavit under Education § 7-101(c) applies when a child lives full-time with a relative in stable, adequate housing because of a qualifying family hardship. You have a home with room for the child, and the arrangement is the result of the parent's death, serious illness, addiction, incarceration, abandonment, or military deployment.

McKinney-Vento applies when a child lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. The classic scenarios: the child is doubled up with a relative specifically because of housing loss or economic hardship, living in a motel, shelter, car, or substandard conditions.

The critical distinction is housing stability. If you have stable housing and the child moved in because of a parent's crisis, the kinship affidavit is usually the right path. If the child's living situation is itself unstable — you are sharing a one-bedroom apartment with three other people because you lost your own home, or the child bounced between several relatives' couches before landing with you — McKinney-Vento may be the better fit.

What McKinney-Vento Provides

Federal law requires every Maryland school district to provide:

• Immediate enrollment — the child must be enrolled immediately, even without immunization records, birth certificates, academic transcripts, or proof of residency
• School of origin rights — the child can stay at the school they attended before becoming unhoused, for the duration of the homelessness or the rest of the academic year
• Free transportation — the district must provide transportation to and from the school of origin

These protections are broader than the kinship affidavit in some ways. No qualifying family relationship is required — the child does not have to be your blood relative. No kinship hardship affidavit is needed, and missing enrollment records do not delay immediate enrollment.

The Homeless Liaison

Every Maryland school district employs a McKinney-Vento homeless liaison. This person independently evaluates whether a child qualifies. If you think the child's living situation meets the standard — not just that a parent is in crisis, but that the housing itself is inadequate or temporary — ask the school to connect you with the homeless liaison.

You can also request a "displacement form" directly. Mention the McKinney-Vento Act by name; some front desk staff may not be familiar with it.

When Both Apply

A child can qualify under McKinney-Vento even while living with a relative. Living with a grandparent does not automatically disqualify a student. What matters is why the child is sharing your home and whether the housing is adequate.

If both pathways are available, McKinney-Vento provides immediate enrollment even if required records are missing, and the right to stay at the child's previous school. The kinship affidavit offers stability — it establishes educational domicile at your address and is renewable annually. Some families use McKinney-Vento for immediate enrollment and then transition to the kinship affidavit once the housing situation stabilizes.

For a full comparison of both pathways — including a decision flowchart — see our Maryland School and Medical Consent Guide.

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