Be the One Who Steps In

From Hardship to Helping, GIEA Member Pays It Forward

When first-time delegate Brian Whitecalf stepped up to the microphone at Delegate Assembly in April, nearly 300 educators were still talking, shuffling papers and settling into the business of the day.

Whitecalf, a Grand Island Education Association member, had a motion to make. The story that came with it was personal.

“I was born on a Friday,” Whitecalf began. “I was born directly into the definition of homelessness. On my birthday, I was doubled up with my grandparents on a farm between Grand Island and Wood River, Nebraska. Every year, I moved into a new house until eighth grade. I lived with my grandmother in fifth grade, sixth grade and seventh grade in a duplex apartment on a twin mattress in the living room.”

Within a few sentences, the bustling assembly had gone quiet. At times, his voice caught as he recounted the harder parts of his story. Still, Whitecalf was succinct and deliberate.

He told delegates about the educators who found ways to make sure he got home safely and stayed involved in school. Then he told them why he was sharing his story. There were students like him sitting in Nebraska classrooms, and federal law guarantees them protections many educators may not realize exist.

By the time Whitecalf finished introducing the resolution, educators throughout the room were wiping away tears. For some, his story reflected pieces of their own childhoods. For others, it brought to mind students they had taught, supported or were still helping through similar circumstances.

Delegates rose in a standing ovation, and Whitecalf’s new resolution affirming NSEA’s support for strengthening the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act passed unanimously.

Removing the Barriers
Today, Whitecalf is a McKinney-Vento community liaison, working with students experiencing homelessness at Grand Island Public Schools. Whitecalf understands the barriers students face, the stigma attached to asking for help and how difficult it can be for students to recognize their own experiences as homelessness. 

Simply asking a student whether they have ever been homeless may not tell the whole story. Whitecalf asks whether they can recall a time they stayed with friends or family because they had nowhere else to go. Under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, homelessness is broader than living on the street or in a shelter. A student who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate place to sleep may qualify for protections, including some students who are doubled up with friends or relatives, staying in a motel or sleeping in a car. There is no minimum number of nights written into the federal definition, meaning even a brief period of housing instability can matter.

“Even myself, I would have said, ‘No, I wasn’t homeless,’” Whitecalf said.

Educators Should Know
McKinney-Vento protections include immediate enrollment without waiting for documents normally required, such as proof of residency, school records or immunization records. The law also provides equal access to public education, meaning students may be able to remain at their school even if they move, receive transportation to and from school and participate in the same programs and activities as their peers. 

For Whitecalf, recognizing housing instability and understanding what comes next are equally important. Homelessness does not always mean living on the street or in a shelter, and educators need to recognize the many forms it can take and understand the protections available once a student is identified. Not every school has a dedicated McKinney-Vento advocate, making that knowledge especially important for educators who may be the first to notice a student needs help.

The Islanders
Room 108 is home to the Grand Island Archipelago Program, named for a group of islands and inspired by Grand Island’s Islanders and Whitecalf’s view of the students he serves.

“Some islands have more resources than others,” he said. “So there are disparities, there are inconsistencies, but then you need someone to help navigate.”

That navigation can mean clothing, backpacks, school supplies, beds, hygiene products or food. It can mean a ride to a medical appointment, Social Security office or barbershop. It can mean finding a student a bicycle because transportation is keeping them from getting a job. His approach is simple: Find the barrier. Then figure out how to remove it.

“We try to fill every need and eliminate the barriers,” Whitecalf said.

Sometimes, removing a barrier can change the trajectory of a life.

Whitecalf knows because educators once did it for him.

A Rabbit Named Dinner
In fifth grade, Whitecalf’s family life fractured. After the heat was shut off at home, he and his sisters were separated and sent to live with relatives. By junior high, he was getting into fights. 

One of those fights caught a teacher’s attention. Soon, another was giving Whitecalf rides home to keep him safe and out of trouble.

“Then there was a rabbit called Dinner,” Whitecalf said with a smile, shifting to a happier chapter of his story. 

Whitecalf followed Dinner, a cottontail hybrid, into a science classroom. There, he met science teacher Sue Sands-Buss. The rabbit may have gotten him through the door, but Sands-Buss gave him reasons to stay. She made Whitecalf her science aide and started an after-school Botany Club. For two years, she gave him a ride home every day. When summer came, she arranged for Whitecalf to take care of Dinner.

Through the Botany Club, Whitecalf met Chelsa Nickels and, eventually, her parents, educators Gary and Maureen “Mo” Nickels.

Gary Nickels became another constant in Whitecalf’s life. The two argued about politics, religion and school. Nickels pushed him toward student council and other activities. When Whitecalf’s grandmother died during his sophomore year, Nickels was there. When Whitecalf experienced homelessness again between his junior and senior years, Nickels kept pushing him toward a future Whitecalf could not yet see for himself.

Nickels wanted him to become a social worker. Whitecalf had other plans. Years later, after working as a paraprofessional and finding his way into the McKinney-Vento position, Whitecalf realized Nickels, who passed away in 2022, had seen something he had not.

“This is exactly where Gary wanted me to be,” Whitecalf said.

A Coalition of Helpers
Whitecalf’s work earned him recognition as the 2026 NSEA Education Support Professional of the Year and, this summer, the 2026 Reg Weaver Memorial Award for Human and Civil Rights from the National Education Association.

For Whitecalf, the recognition is another opportunity to bring attention to student homelessness and find more people willing to help.

“I’m still looking for a whole bunch of people that are going to partner with me,” he said.

Whitecalf believes lasting change cannot depend on one person. It takes educators who recognize when a student needs help, people willing to step in and others ready to carry the work forward.

“I think it takes a coalition of people that come together then to be the changemakers,” he said.

No one person can remove every barrier facing every student. But every student can have someone. Whitecalf is looking for a whole coalition of them.