Cincinnati Public Schools Plans Safe Sleep Lot to Support Families Experiencing Homelessness

By Joe Wessels, Cincinnati Public Schools

As housing costs rise and affordable options shrink across Greater Cincinnati, Cincinnati Public Schools is preparing to open a safe sleep lot designed to support students and families experiencing homelessness. District leaders believe the initiative is among the first in the nation sponsored by a public school district.

The Safe Sleep Lot is part of CPS’s Project Connect, the district’s long-standing program under the federal McKinney-Vento Act that supports students experiencing housing instability. The federal act ensures students experiencing homelessness can stay enrolled in school and receive needed support, even when their housing situation is unstable. The sleep lot initiative is designed specifically for families living in vehicles who have children enrolled in Cincinnati Public Schools.

“We know it’s not a solution,” said Rebeka Beach, director of Project Connect. “It is just a bridge for families. It’s a response to an immediate crisis.”

Cincinnati Public Schools is serving more than 4,300 students experiencing homelessness this school year, a sharp rise from about 2,400 a decade ago. That is an increase of roughly 80% over 10 years. About 300 of those students are living outdoors or in vehicles, according to district figures. Project Connect officials say the number of students identified as experiencing homelessness has jumped steadily, with a 24% increase from one year to the next prior to the 2025 school year, reflecting broader regional and statewide trends in housing affordability and economic stress.

The sleep lot, which will be at Taft Elementary in Mount Auburn, will provide a secure overnight parking area with on-site security and access to basic amenities, including bathrooms, showers, food, storage and laundry services.

Beach said the need for such a program has grown substantially over the past decade. When she began managing Project Connect nearly 10 years ago, most families experiencing homelessness were doubled up with relatives or staying in shelters.

“Street homelessness or families living in their cars was just not common,” Beach said. “We would see maybe 20 to 30 students a year, tops, in that situation.”

That changed during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted families living below the poverty level and has had a residual impact. Our numbers continue to grow in terms of families who are sleeping outside or in their vehicles or in places not fit for human habitation,” she said.

Last year alone, CPS served more than 300 students through emergency hotel stays over a 12-month period. By January, the district was already approaching 200 students.

“These are working families,” Beach said. “The majority of our families are working.”

She described one parent who lost her job as a school bus driver after repeatedly staying awake through the night to keep her children safe while sleeping in their vehicle. One day, she fell asleep on the job and was let go. Loss of employment further perpetuates the cycle of homelessness.

“She said at night she couldn’t sleep because she was worried about her children’s safety,” Beach said. “So she was up checking on them all night long.”

The Safe Sleep Lot is intended to interrupt that cycle by offering families a consistent, secure place to rest while they work with CPS and community partners to pursue longer-term housing options.

“One of the things that I think is the most important part of the Safe Sleep Lot is that to get into shelter here in Cincinnati, you have to be verified as sleeping in your car or outside,” Beach said. “With the safe sleep lot, all of our families will be verified within 24 hours.”

That verification helps families move more quickly through the shelter system, which is often overwhelmed.

“Our shelters are just full,” Beach said. “So they’ll be able to return to the lot. They’ll be assigned a spot and stay there until they have other arrangements.”

The idea emerged after CPS staff studied safe sleep and safe parking programs in California. While similar programs exist across the country, Beach said they are typically operated by cities, nonprofits or community colleges — not K-12 school districts.

“I know San Diego tried, but they were not able to actually open a safe sleep lot as a school district,” Beach said.

Back in Cincinnati, Project Connect began fundraising in earnest last spring. Community support has exceeded expectations, allowing Cincinnati Public to expand beyond its original plan.

“We were thinking a lot with a fence and a bathroom,” Beach said. “But now we’re building a structure that will have a room for security. There’s going to be another room where we are going to have a microwave and a deep freezer and fill that with meals.”

Security was a priority from the outset, she said, both for families and for surrounding neighborhoods.

“Safety of our families and of the community was a priority,” Beach said.

Beyond the lot itself, CPS is expanding wraparound services through Project Connect, including partnerships with Hamilton County Job and Family Services, legal aid providers and laundry services.

“If you really want to improve educational outcomes, attendance is the precursor to everything,” Beach said. “If our students’ basic safety and security needs aren’t being met, they’re just not positioned to learn.”

The district hopes to open the Safe Sleep Lot this spring, pending construction and permitting.

“My hope is that we can open around April 13,” Beach said, noting that the timeline depends on the build-out.

For Beach, the work is rooted in a simple goal.

“We just really want to help our kids,” she said.