Many Children in our City are Suffering, Let’s Stop Ignoring Them!
By Christina Colón

There are approximately 400 children in Milwaukee and 12,047 children state-wide who are homeless. These children are scared, confused, sick, isolated, traumatized, feeling insecure, and hungry not know when they will receive their next meal. As if this is not disturbing enough, the intensity of their despair, isolation, and deprivation is amplified by falling significantly behind in school. As a citizen of Milwaukee, mother of four children in Milwaukee Public Schools, and a School Council Member at Trowbridge Elementary School, I am awakened to these signs of homelessness and poverty so severe that education is severely compromised because the basic needs of these children not being met on a consistent and regular basis in their homes.

The MPS system is the major source of education for these deprived children. However, MPS teachers are not adequately equipped with the appropriate resources to provide specialized treatment and education that these children require. It appears to me that MPS systems have been set up to fail in the area of educating these children, no matter how wonderful the teachers are or principle is. It is our community and government who have failed these children, and unfortunately MPS is the target of all the blame. If MPS is to endure the responsibility of all of the children who attend Milwaukee Public School’s, then we need to provide them with the appropriate tools, financial support, and resources to do so in order to provide the type of education that is expected and needed.

Community members need to become involved with their community instead of continuing to ignore the issues. As a community, we can no longer pretend that these problems do not exist. We need to take a stand to help these children before they lose all hope and ambition for their future. They will not see a future if they do not see opportunities for their future. By creating public awareness, I hope to obtain support from the community toward advocating for homeless children in Milwaukee and throughout Wisconsin. We can make a major difference in the lives of these children, and in our communities, if we continue to advocate for a school system in which provides all of the basic needs that these children require, and specialized education. The community will not only gain many more productive citizens, but also save millions of dollars in tax savings when these children become adults and will not need to depend on government funding or criminal justice expenses. We are living in a very crippling cycle of poverty, homelessness, and social issues that can be changed one child at a time. It is not hopeless.

There is an idea in it’s infancy stages of developing SEED Schools in Milwaukee. A SEED School primarily addresses the basic and educational needs of severe poverty stricken and/or homeless children, while also drastically contributing to the overall well-being and development. SEED schools provide a holistic approach to dealing with children who are not given a nurturing or adequate environment to thrive in. These schools incorporate a residential component where the children can be housed and receive intensive education all under the same domain. The Planning Committee for The SEED School of Wisconsin is saying that we need $30 to $40 million to create a SEED School, but I believe that Milwaukee has the ability to cut a large portion of that cost by utilizing the existing schools that are pending closure or merger, along with businesses or buildings that are closed or vacant. It is not necessary to build a brand new facility in order to begin this process. It is not what the school looks like that matters most, but what the school can provide for these children that counts; hope, education, and a much brighter future. Let these children know that their community has not forgotten about them and do care.

For more information, please visit www.FamilyHomelessness.org or contact me at advoc84@gmail.com.