The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

The National Center on Family Homelessness released a report today that found that 1.5 million children in the U.S. experienced homelessness at least once in a given year.

The report, which analyzes data from 2005 and 2006, also examines the impact of homelessness on children's education and health. Typically, homeless children lead extremely difficult lives because they do not have access to privacy or health care and often attend school infrequently.

The report recommends that local, state and federal governments take action in order to prevent and end child homelessness. For example, the report suggests that the federal government set aside a third of housing program funding specifically for homeless families and families who are at risk of homelessness. In addition, state interagency councils on homelessness handling homelessness should make family homelessness a priority.