Principals’ Perceptions of Students Experiencing Homelessness in Cyber Charter Schools Compared to Brick-and-Mortar Schools in Pennsylvania

Youth homelessness continues to rise in Pennsylvania, with over 40,000 students identified as experiencing homelessness (SEH) in 2023. As a result, educational leaders are tasked with creating equitable support systems. This study investigated the perceptions of high school principals regarding SEH in cyber charter schools compared to traditional brick-and-mortar schools, examining their support strategies, their preparedness to implement the McKinney-Vento Act (MKVA), and actual student graduation outcomes. Grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (EST) and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (MHN), the research explores how school settings and systemic layers influence the academic pathways of vulnerable students. This study employed a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, collecting qualitative and quantitative data concurrently from a purposive sample of forty-four Local Education Agencies (LEAs) with at least 5% of their enrollment experiencing homelessness. Data was gathered through a seventeen question survey completed by twenty six high school administrators ( nbrick-and-mortar=21, ncyber=5) and graduation rate data retrieved from the SchoolHouse Connection database. The findings revealed that while principals in both school models prioritize social-emotional support and basic needs, their operational strategies diverge based on the medium of instruction. Cyber charter principals placed a statistically higher priority on technological infrastructure (p < .05), such as providing hardware and hotspots, whereas brick-and-mortar leaders focused more heavily on transportation and extracurricular access. Notably, 40% of cyber principals emphasized that virtual settings protect the “dignity” of SEH by maintaining confidentiality regarding their housing status. Statistical analysis showed no significant difference in principals' perceived preparedness or understanding of MKVA across school types, leading to the retention of the null hypothesis for research question two. Furthermore, research question three found no statistically significant difference in the graduation rates of SEH between cyber charter and brick-and-mortar schools. These results validate school choice, suggesting that cyber charter schools provide a viable and effective alternative for SEH by achieving academic parity with traditional models while offering a more flexible learning environment. This study offers critical insights for policy and practice, advocating for data-driven leadership training and the preservation of diverse educational options to meet the foundational and academic needs of Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable students.