2017 Colorado Revised Statutes
Title 22 - Education
General and Administrative
Article 1 - General Provisions
§ 22-1-102.5. Definition of homeless child
(1) The general assembly hereby finds and declares that, because of the growing number of children and families who are homeless in Colorado, there is a need to ensure that all homeless children receive a proper education. It is the intent of the general assembly that no child shall be denied the benefits of a free education in the public schools because the child is homeless.
(2) (a) As used in this article 1, unless the context otherwise requires, "homeless child" means:
(I) A school-aged child who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including but not limited to:
(A) A child who is living in a motel, hotel, or camping ground due to a lack of alternative adequate accommodations;
(B) A child who is living in an emergency or transitional shelter;
(C) A child who is abandoned in a hospital; and
(D) A child awaiting foster care placement; or
(II) A school-aged child who has a primary nighttime residence that is:
(A) A supervised, publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations, including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for persons with behavioral or mental health disorders;
(B) An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
(C) A public or private place not designed for, nor ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings, including but not limited to an automobile, a park, an abandoned building, a bus or train station, or a similar setting.
(b) "Homeless child" shall not include any individual imprisoned or otherwise detained pursuant to an act of congress or a state law.
(c) "Homeless child" shall include a migrant school-aged child who meets the requirements of this subsection (2).
(d) "Homeless child" shall include a school-aged child who meets the requirements of this subsection (2) who is not in the physical custody of a parent or legal guardian.
