Homeless youth population growing in West Virginia

According to the most recent report from the West Virginia Department of education there are over 10,000 homeless students in the state.

An increase of about 1,000 young people in just a single year.

Lawmakers including senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) are attempting to tackle the growing problem of homeless young people with funding, announcing they were awarding over three hundred million dollars across the state to organizations assisting young people who are struggling.

George Batten, the executive director of Union Rescue Ministries in Fairmont, says they've noticed the age of people coming into their offices getting lower over the years.

"When we started in the 1937s the average homeless individual that came to the mission for protection was 65, a few years back it was 35, and now it's becoming even lower than that,"

One contributing factor to the age drop, batten says, is the ongoing drug crisis in the state

"We're now having a generation that is coming of age that were drug addicted babies when they were born,"

These issues, coupled with more complicated and fragmented family lives, can increase a person's likelihood to end up homeless, batten says.

"If parents aren't taking care of children, tat puts them out on their own at an earlier age," Batten said "If they're not instructing children the children are not equip for life in general,"

Senator Capito agrees, saying it's focusing on combating the drug crisis that will make a better future for West Virginia's young people.

"A lot of this is tied to drug-addicted families, drug-addicted parents, where the children are neglected,"