Status Update from Sept 23rd to Oct 3rd

Status Update as of October 3rd at 1:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Today's Update is being delivered one hour earlier.As of this update the DMAT (Disaster Medical Assistance Team) FL-4 fromFlorida is in the demob process and will be moving to Port Arthur, TX toaugment the staff at Christus St. Mary Hospital. All shelterees with medicalissues have been relocated to VA medical facilities in Waco and Marlin. Theremaining five are being relocated to a local hotel. It is expected thatthe Wal-Mart facility will be shut down soon but no word has been given asof this update.On Sunday, a number of evacuees left the Waco area or took advantage ofother housing options provided by FEMA and the Red Cross. Of the 57 peoplethat were transferred from the Waco Convention Center to the Bledsoe-MillerRecreation Center on Sunday afternoon, only 38 remain in the City operatedshelter.School Update: As of close of school Friday, Region Connally had 3, LaVegahad 2, Midway had 25, Robinson had 2, Waco ISD had 77.The City continues to assist evacuees return to their homes as coastalcities re-open. Many evacuees are relocating to facilities closer to theirhome.The American Red Cross is assisting Rita evacuees receive help gettingcloser to their home by providing them cash vouchers that can help them buygas and other things needed to move out of shelters and in to more permanenthousing.Any other church or non-profit agency providing temporary sheltering ofhurricane evacuees who would like to share their information and needs,please email Larryh@ci.waco.tx.us.

Status Update as of October 2nd at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation with Health District and EOC coordinators available throughout thenight. As of this update the Wal-Mart shelter is transferring all but a fewpatients to the Waco and Marlin VA Hospitals. Some are being moved back tothe Houston area. At this time they have not received any informationregarding the potential of more evacuees coming to the Waco location. Thisspecial needs shelter is being operated by the State Operation Center andstaffed by a 32 member DMAT (Disaster Medical Assistance Team) from Florida.VA officials contacted on Sunday did not indicate any change in the numberof people they had reported previously however the report from the Wal-Martshelter indicated a portion of their Saturday total of 159 were sent to thetwo VA hospital locations. The VA hospital system and the US Public HealthServices are providing staffing.The 83 people that have been at the Waco Convention Center are beingtransferred to the Bledsoe-Miller Recreation Center today (Sunday) at2:30pm. The Convention Center will no longer be used a temporary shelter.The City continues to assist evacuees return to their homes as coastalcities re-open. Many evacuees are relocating to facilities closer to theirhome.Director of The Governor's Division of Emergency Management personallycontacted the Waco McLennan County Emergency Management office to expresshis thanks for all the hard work, and the speed in which we were able tospin up the old Wal-Mart store for shelter operations. He was impressed withthe way the operation was handled and how quickly things happen. Also theDMAT federal team (Disaster Medical Assistance Team) has expressedappreciation for the effort. They noted that in their experience it oftentakes days to get done what Waco was able to pull off in hours.The American Red Cross is assisting Rita evacuees receive help gettingcloser to their home by providing them cash vouchers that can help them buygas and other things needed to move out of shelters and in to more permanenthousing.If an evacuee lived in one of the nine FEMA disaster area counties(Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, orTyler) and is displaced from their home, those persons may be eligible tostay in a hotel room if they personally contact FEMA for authorization.
Status Update as of October 1st at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation with Health District and EOC coordinators available throughout thenight. As of this update the total number of people at the Wal-Mart shelter is 159.Some of those will be transferred to the VA later this afternoon. Thespecial needs shelter is being operated by the State Operation Center andstaffed by a 32 member DMAT (Disaster Medical Assistance Team) from Florida.After being registered and checked, those with more medical needs are beingtaken to the Waco VA Hospital. Others that are more ambulatory are going tothe Marling VA. VA officials indicated that they are caring for 110 people at the Waco VAand 93 at the Marlin location. The VA hospital system and the US PublicHealth Services are providing staffing.The Waco Convention Center has 87 evacuees being sheltered. The City continues to assist evacuees return to their homes as coastalcities re-open. Many evacuees are relocating to facilities closer to theirhome.The American Red Cross is assisting Rita evacuees receive help gettingcloser to their home by providing them cash vouchers that can help them buygas and other things needed to move out of shelters and in to more permanenthousing.If an evacuee lived in one of the nine FEMA disaster area counties(Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, orTyler) and is displaced from their home, those persons may be eligible tostay in a hotel room if they personally contact FEMA for authorization.
Status Update as of September 30th at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation with Health District and EOC coordinators available throughout thenight. Ten buses from San Antonio and Nacogdoches arrived at the old Wal-MartSpecial Needs shelter on Valley Mills drive Thursday around 9:30pm bringing430 people with varying needs. Some had special needs and others were familymembers and caregivers. 137 were treated for various medical conditions.As of this update the total number of people at the Wal-Mart shelter is 273.The special needs shelter is being operated by the State Operation Centerand staffed by a 32 member DMAT (Disaster Medical Assistance Team) fromFlorida. After being registered and checked, those with more medical needswere taken to the Waco VA Hospital. Others that are more ambulatory aregoing to the Marling VA. They expect another 120 more to possibly arrivelater this afternoon (Friday). The VA officials indicated that on Thursday they had received 48 patientsand 19 family members. We have not received an updated count from the VA asof this update. The VA hospital system and the US Public Health Services areproviding staffing.The Waco Convention Center has 80 evacuees being sheltered. The City continues to assist evacuees return to their homes as coastalcities re-open. Many evacuees are relocating to facilities closer to theirhome.The American Red Cross is assisting Rita evacuees receive help gettingcloser to their home by providing them cash vouchers that can help them buygas and other things needed to move out of shelters and in to more permanenthousing.If an evacuee lived in one of the nine FEMA disaster area counties(Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, orTyler) and is displaced from their home, those persons may be eligible tostay in a hotel room if they personally contact FEMA for authorization. School Report: Waco ISD reports a total of 77 evacuees in their system,Midway has 25 from Katrina and 10 from Rita for a total of 25. Robinsonstill has two. LaVega has two students from Katrina. Connally has three,China Spring has a total of nine.The United Methodist Churches are sponsoring another relief supply drop atthe old Target Store on Highway 6 and Sanger Ave. on Saturday October 1 from9-3 Items will be sent to Baldwin, Louisiana for distribution where it isneeded. Bottled water, health kits (which include 1 hand towel, 1 bathtowel, 1 wash cloth, 1 comb, 1 nail file, 1 bath size soap bar, 1toothbrush, 1 toothpaste, 6 band-aids, Please put these items in a onegallon zip lock bag), shovels, work gloves, brooms, chain saws, mops,cleaning supplies. No cloths or food items except canned food, baby food andsenior supplements.
Status Update as of September 29th at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation with Health District and EOC coordinators available throughout thenight. The Wal-Mart Special Needs shelter, being operated by the State OperationCenter, had 52 but are transferring 11 to the VA by 2:30pm today. They areexpecting three busses with 103 people to arrive this afternoon. Not surehow many are patients, caregivers or family. VA officials indicate that theFEMA operated special needs shelter at the Waco VA Hospital has not receivedanyone as of this update. The Waco Convention Center has 88 evacuees being sheltered. As more areas of the impacted coastal area are reopened, the City continuesto assist evacuees return to their homes. Many are relocating to facilitiescloser to their home.If an evacuee lived in one of the nine FEMA disaster area counties(Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, orTyler) and is displaced from their home, those persons may be eligible tostay in a hotel room if they personally contact FEMA for authorization. School Update: Waco ISD reports new student enrollments from Rita evacueesfor an overall total of 77 evacuees. Midway indicates they have receivedtwo from Rita for a total of 29. Robinson still has two. LaVega has twostudents from Katrina. Connally has three, China Spring has a total of nine.Texas Youth Commission indicates they have received 200 youth from theBeaumont detention center in their facility in Mart and it appears that theywill not be able to reopen the Beaumont facility in the near future. Theirstaff will be relocating in our area for at least six months. Since theseare state employees, the housing department at TSTC has arranged for them tolease available apartments on their campus and are waving the deposit andminimum one year lease requirement for these individuals.In order to purchase and provide prescription medication to those who havecome into our community that don't have insurance or Medicare, theWaco-McLennan County Public Health District and Family Practice Clinic areaccepting cash donations to pay for these prescriptions. Checks can bemailed to: Waco Family Practice Clinic, 1600 Providence, Waco, Tx 76707.From Waco Christian Fellowship church: They are currently housing 8 Katrinaevacuees and 13 Rita evacuees. Current needs: volunteers (may call772-9768) and perishable items (grocery gift cards seem to work best).
Status Update as of September 28th at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation with Health District and EOC coordinators available throughout thenight. Mid-afternoon on Tuesday, local Emergency Management was directed to arrangefor and set up a facility to shelter approximately 500 special needspatients that could arrive as early as 7:30pm that evening. When Waco was first contacted by the SOC (State Operations Center forEmergency Management) to establish shelters for Hurricane Rita evacuees lastweek, we identified additional buildings that could be quickly stood up asshelters if needed. Although we did not need the Old Wal-Mart building onValley Mills Drive, the City advised the SOC of its availability. Within 3-4hours City of Waco Staff and representatives of the Waco Medical Communitywere at the site preparing it to be a sanitizing hospital environment. Cleaning staff from both hospitals cleaned air ducts, stripped and sanitizedthe floors, shampooed the carpets. Electricians repaired light fixtures andMechanical contractors and City Facilities staff placed eight of the ten airconditioning units in operation. City Staff transported the hundreds ofleftover cots that were at the Convention Center to the Wal-Mart location.Salvation Army, Red Cross, Medical staff from Waco Public Health, MHMR,Family Practice, Providence and Hillcrest Hospitals were on site setting upand labeling various areas of the building for Registration, Triage,Cardiac, Diabetic, Dehydration, Mental and other types of specialty needs.East Texas Medical Center had 4-5 ambulances standing by to transportpatients needing more advanced care to the hospitals. Store managers from all three Wal-Mart stores were on site responding toneeds. By 9pm Tuesday the facility was ready to receive patients and a system ofregistering, triaging and receiving mass evacuees was in place.Shortly before midnight a Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) and Tx DHSNurses arrived. Shortly after midnight one bus with eleven people from Nacogdoches arrivedand two busses from Beaumont arrived. Three were transported to thehospital, 10-12 others had misc. medical needs that were attended to byDoctors and nurses from Family Practice and local hospitals. As of thisupdate, no new evacuees have arrived at the Wal-Mart Shelter.As more areas of the impacted coastal area are reopened, the City continuesto assist evacuees return to their homes. Many are relocating to facilitiescloser to their home.If an evacuee lived in one of the nine FEMA disaster area counties(Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, orTyler) and is displaced from their home, those persons may be eligible tostay in a hotel room if they personally contact FEMA for authorization. As of this update all evacuees have left the Bledsoe-Miller RecreationCenter special needs shelter. The Convention Center has 100. Immediate Need: In order to purchase and provide prescription medication tothose who have come into our community that don't have insurance orMedicare, the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District and FamilyPractice Clinic are accepting cash donations to pay for these prescriptions.Checks can be mailed to: Waco Family Practice Clinic, 1600 Providence, Waco,Tx 76707.We have not received any information from churches who have been shelteringHurricane Katrina evacuees
From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

FEMA to reimburse religious groups for aid Organizations gave hurricane victims shelter

By Alan Cooperman and Elizabeth Williamson The Washington Post
September 27, 2005

WASHINGTON · After weeks of prodding by Republican legislators and the American Red Cross, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Monday that it will use taxpayer money to reimburse churches and other religious organizations that have opened their doors to provide shelter, food and supplies to survivors of hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

FEMA officials said it would mark the first time that the government has made large-scale payments to religious groups for helping to cope with a domestic natural disaster.

Civil liberties groups called the decision a violation of the traditional boundary between church and state, accusing FEMA of trying to restore its battered reputation by playing to religious
conservatives.

"What really frosts me about all this is, here is an administration that didn't do its job and now is trying to dig itself out by making right-wing groups happy," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive
Director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

For churches, synagogues, and mosques that have taken in hurricane survivors, FEMA's decision presents a quandary. Some said they were eager to get the money and had begun tallying their costs, from electric bills to worn carpets. Other said they probably would not apply for the funds, fearing donations will dry up if the public comes to think they were receiving government handouts.

"Volunteer labor is just that: volunteer," said the Rev. Robert E. Reccord, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board.

When Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, religious charities rushed in to provide emergency services, often acting more quickly and efficiently than the government. Relief workers in the stricken states estimate that 500,000 people have taken
refuge in facilities run by religious groups.

After the disaster, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, and other Republicans said FEMA seemed reluctant to pay church groups. "There are tons of questions about what is reimbursable, what is not reimbursable,” DeLay said Sept. 13, noting that Houston had "500 or 600 churches that took in evacuees, and they would get no reimbursement."

Joe Becker, senior vice president for preparedness and response with
the Red Cross, said he and his staff also urged FEMA to allow reimbursement
of religious groups. Ordinarily, Becker said, churches provide shelter
for the first days after a disaster, then the Red Cross takes over. But in a storm season that has stretched every Red Cross shelter to the breaking point, church buildings must for the first time house evacuees indefinitely.

"I believe it's appropriate for the federal government to assist the faith community because of the scale and scope of the effort," he said.

Lynn disagreed. "I don't think a lot of people realize that a lot of these organizations are actively working to obtain federal funds. That's a strange definition of charity," he said.


Copyright © 2005, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Status Update as of September 27th at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation with Health District and EOC coordinators available throughout thenight. As more cities around the Gulf Coast open back up, efforts to assist theremaining evacuees to return to their home are underway. All city shelteredevacuees that have not registered with FEMA are being assisted by city staffby providing them direct access to FEMA's registration website,www.fema.gov. Arrangements are being made to identify and coordinatetransportation needs to get the evacuees to their home, or to relatives orfriends near their home. If an evacuee lived in one of the nine FEMA disaster area counties(Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, orTyler) and is displaced from their home, those persons may be eligible tostay in a hotel room if they personally contact FEMA for authorization. As of this update Bledsoe-Miller Recreation Center has 11 special needsevacuees and the Convention Center has 111. Immediate Need: In order to purchase and provide prescription medication tothose who have come into our community that don't have insurance orMedicare, the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District and FamilyPractice Clinic are accepting cash donations to pay for these prescriptions.Checks can be mailed to: Waco Family Practice Clinic, 1900 Providence, Waco,Tx 76707.We have not received any information from churches who have been shelteringHurricane Katrina evacuees. Many lenders and insurers have implemented deferment policies for policyholders impacted by Hurricane Katrina. Homeowners need to contact theirlender and insurance company to activate these deferments. This is not widely know among the Hurricane Katrina evacuees. The link tothe list of websites is: http://www.acornhousing.org/TEXT/katrinalenders.pdf
Status Update as of September 26th at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation, however due to the small number of evacuees in the two cityshelters, around the clock staffing has been reduced to a Health Districtrepresentative and EOC coordinator. As of this update Bledsoe-Miller Recreation Center has 17 special needsevacuees and the Convention Center has 127. One evacuee remains in thehospital and one at a local nursing home. The process of demarcation isunderway to sanitize and break down the hundreds of cots purchased andairlifted in by the City earlier in the week. These will be stored forfuture evacuation needs. Other items like towels will be cleaned andproperly stored in sealed drums. It is believed that some of the evacuees from Beaumont and Port Arthur areasmay remain in Waco until Wednesday or later. Some of the remaining evacueeswere brought in by private individuals and dropped off at the ConventionCenter and now have no method of transportation to take them back. Thoseneeds are being addressed by local and state EOC's. In addition to Waco, the City of Woodway established a public shelter intheir jurisdiction and at one time had approximately 200 people in theircommunity center.The Salvation Army is working on plans to transport a busload of people toHouston. Details are not available as of this update.Two evacuees that were being sheltered in the Convention Center wereoriginally evacuees from Hurricane Katrina. They have learned their homehas been completely destroyed. One has already secured a job locally and isworking with FEMA to obtain permanent housing in Waco.City staff are assisting remaining evacuees with cloths washing and otherneeds as they remain in our city.The local American Red Cross and Salvation Army continue to provide food andstaffing by trained volunteers at the two city operated shelters. Areahotels donated 1,500 guest soaps, several hundred shampoos and about 100towels.Waco-McLennan County Public Health District staff continue to monitor andrespond to medical needs at the two remaining shelters. Calls to area churches who were previously sheltering Hurricane Katrinaevacuees and working to place them in permanent housing where not returnedby today's deadline. A status update on that effort will be providedtomorrow or when we receive the information. As of this update, School Enrollment from Hurricane Katrina victims: WacoISD has 67, Midway ISD has 26 and Robinson has two.
Status Update as of September 24th at 2:30pm fromWaco-McLennan County Emergency Management
Waco-McLennan County EOC (Emergency Operations Center) continues on 24 houroperation. Since 8am Saturday morning no new evacuees have come to the WacoConvention Center seeking shelter. As of 8:00am they had 540 people therewith a capacity of 900. As of 8:45am there are 3,477 identified evacueesbeing sheltering in the Waco area but we know there are numerous faith basedand private individuals who are caring for people that have not contactedEmergency Management to report plus an unknown number staying in areahotels.Cell phones have been issued to all city shelters for use by evacuees tomake personal calls.Although Waco-McLennan County Emergency Management encourages all evacueesto be patient and heed the request by Texas Coastal Emergency Management andMayors of various cities to not return at this time, many are leaving localshelters. As of 11:00am 140 had left the Convention Center to start backhome. As people leave the various shelters, people will be moved from SulRoss Recreation Center, and Dewey Recreation Centers Saturday afternoon toconsolidate resources. These centers were selected mainly due to the factthat they do not have shower facilities. The local American Red Cross continues to provide food and staffing bytrained volunteers at all the city operated shelters. The Salvation Army isalso playing a major role in providing for the needs of the evacuees. Cityemployees are assisting the EOC by providing around the clock coordinationand bi-lingual phone response, distribution of needed resources andadministering to the needs of evacuees of all ages.Waco-McLennan County Public Health District staff continue to monitor andrespond to medical needs at the various shelters . Saturday morning doctorsfrom the Family Practice Center and others assessed the specific medicalneeds of evacuees and wrote prescriptions as needed. The Public HealthDistrict assisted in obtaining and administering the prescriptions. Waco's ambulance service, East Texas Medical Center, indicates that theircall load was up by two-thirds. Ten calls had come from various shelters asof 9am Saturday morning.Waco Transit has shuttled evacuees from city shelters that don't have showerfacilities to locations where they do.Countless special needs have been individually addressed by EOC staff asevacuees are in Waco. Green Family Camp in Bruceville reports having 370 evacuees.The Waco area animal shelters are at capacity.Baylor University opened a portion of the Ferrell Center and receivedapproximately 200 overnight evacuees. They have since closed down.It appears that local impact by the storm was much less than previouslyestimated. From 9-1-1- Dispatch: Persons who need to report debris in the road,inoperative traffic signals and other non-emergency occurrences should callthe Waco Police department's main number, 750-7500, NOT 9-1-1. Downed powerlines should be treated as an emergency.Although we are tracking and have a list of many of the Faith Basedorganizations who have stepped forward and are providing temporarysheltering for Hurricane Rita evacuees, we will not attempt to list them.The efforts of ALL who are providing shelter are greatly appreciated and asalways, the true heart of our community has opened its arms to providesupport for those in need.A transcript of this report and all other daily updates along withinformation and other local and national resource information for help arebeing added regularly to the City's web site. By going to www.waco-texas.comyou will find several links for information on the communities efforts andthe nation. Citizen volunteers are encouraged to print out these resourceweb pages to provide to evacuees that they are serving and who do not haveweb access. The city will be happy to provide as many printed copies as maybe needed by calling 750-5636. Anyone who comes into our community that needs sheltering, please call750-5911.

Information regarding the Ferrell Center is wrong. The information we haveis that the Ferrell Center did not ever shelter any overnight evacuees.While they indicated they were ready to shelter up to 250 the few thatappeared were referred to the Convention Center.
A National Emergency Resource Registry website has been established by the Department of Homeland Security for anyone wanting to donate, provide or sell housing, services, transportation, food and personal items for the Hurricane Katrina recovery effort. The site is located at http://www.nerr.gov/.
Its function is to help coordinate resources that are needed and resources that may be available from the private and public sectors.
Anita Knight

Good morning: The welfare of survivor families is certainly weighing heavily on all of us and we at Region 12 want to make certain that all school-aged children have a smooth transition to school enrollment and educational services. Attached, please find a document containing frequently asked questions and answers that parents may have as they are discussing educational services for their child/ren. Please let me know if ESC Region 12 can assist you with any dissemination of education information.
Judy Hicks
Director for Accountability Education Service Center Region 12
P.O. Box 23409 Waco, TX 76702-3409
http://us.f519.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=jhicks@esc12.net telephone: 254.297.1154
http://staffweb.esc12.net/~jhicks
FAQ: Education Services for Students from Hurricane Disaster Areas in Texas Schools
This Question and Answer (Q&A) document will provide information to parents of school age children who have temporarily relocated to Texas from Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina. The Q&A document provides information about how to enroll in Texas schools, health and immunization requirements, school lunch and nutrition, special education, and language instruction.
1. How soon may I enroll my child/ren in a Texas school?

2. What school records must I have to enroll my child/ren in a Texas school?

3. What health and immunizationrecords do I need to enroll mychild/ren in school while I am temporarily in Texas?

4. Which school should I send my child/ren to?

5. What services is my child eligible to receive?

6. How will my child/ren receive meals at their new school?

7. My child received special education in his/her previous school. Will he/she get those services during our temporary stay in Texas?

8. My child speaks another language at home and received help in learning English in his/her previous school. Will he/she get those services during our temporary stay in Texas?

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1. How soon may I enroll my child/ren in a Texas school?Students have the right to enroll in school immediately.
2. What school records must I have to enroll my child/ren in a Texas school?In an emergency situation such as a natural disaster, a family may not have required documents such as school records, medical records, proof of residency, or other documents. The school district will enroll the students without requiring these documents.
3. What health and immunization records do I need to enroll my child/ren in school while I am temporarily in Texas?The Texas Department of State Health Services has announced a temporary provisional enrollment for students transferring from Louisiana, Mississippi, or Alabama. Normal immunization requirements for children attending school in Texas are being temporarily waived for children displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Children from Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama will be granted a 30-day provisional enrollment. This period may be extended depending on the hurricane recovery progress. A special form allowing the 30-day provisional enrollment will be available from the school (see attached sample).
4. Which school should I send my child/ren to?Your child/ren will be allowed to enroll immediately in the local school near where you are staying even if you do not have the papers or documents normally required. The school district will provide your child/ren with transportation to and from the local school if other children who typically attend the school also get transportation.5. What services is my child eligible to receive? Any student who is in a homeless situation is covered by the federal McKinney-Vento Act and can get free school meals. The school will make sure that students who need special education, gifted and talented programs, English language programs, or other services get those services. Additional services may be provided through the district/campus Title I program.
6. How will my child/ren receive meals at their new school?Children who are victims of disaster such as hurricanes will be categorized as children who are in homeless situations and will be eligible for free meals while attending their temporary school. Your child must be enrolled in the school district and his/her name must appear on a list compiled by the district Homeless Liaison. A list from a shelter director may also be used to identify children who are homeless but those children must also be enrolled in the district. A list will be provided to the school nutrition program for children who are eligible for free meals. No application is required to receive free meals.
7. My child received special education in his/her previous school. Will he/she get those services during our temporary stay in Texas?When enrolling your child in a Texas school, make sure you inform the school that your child previously received special education services. If possible, describe your child’s disability and the services your child received in the previous school. Examples of special education services include the following:
• accommodations or modifications in the general education classroom• resource room for subjects such as reading, language arts, English, mathematics, science, social studies• extra help with subjects through a tutorial/support class• self-contained special education classroom for a portion of the child’s day• self-contained special education classroom for the child’s entire school day
8. My child speaks another language at home and received help in learning English in his/her previous school. Will he/she get those services during our temporary stay in Texas?When enrolling your child in a Texas school, make sure you inform the school that your child received English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction or received bilingual education in English and his/her native language. Once the school is aware that your child needs assistance with language, school personnel will make the appropriate arrangements for your child to receive these services.
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Source: Texas Education Agency web page

This page last updated September 6, 2005


Texas Education Agency Hurricane Katrina Hotline 1-800-957-5109 (8:00 AM 6:00 PM daily; responses will be prompt to messages left outside of the hours of coverage)