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Truancy Solutions:
A Collaborative Plan for
Schools,
Police Departments,
Community Agencies
and the
Juvenile Justice System
2 | P a g e
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Introduction
Planning Group Members 3
Planning Group Background and Action 5
II. Executive Summary 8
III. The Issues 22
Critical Demographics 22
Comprehensive Response to Attendance Diagram, Dr. Hedy Chang 26
Discussion of the Issues & National Research 26
IV. PREVENTION - Chronic Absence 27
Tarrant County Menu of Evidenced-informed Recommendations 27
1. Truancy Prevention Mediation Program, Dispute Resolution Services of
NTx 27
2. Teacher Home Visits 29
3. Attendance Incentives for Parents/Students 30
4. On-Site Therapeutic Family Counseling 31
5. Santa Fe Youth Services Strengthening Families Program 32
V. INTERVENTION - Truancy 35
Discussion of the Issues & National Research 35
Tarrant County Menu of Evidenced-informed Recommendations 39
1. Intervention Attendance Incentive Program (AIP) 39
2. Neighborhood Conference Committee 41
3. Lena Pope’s Second Opportunity for Success 43
4. AimTruancy Solutions 45
5. Parenting with Love and Limits 47
6. Santa Fe Youth Services – Reconnecting Youth 49
7. Job Corps 50
VI. MANAGEMENT - Suspension, Expulsion, Dropping-Out and Delinquency 52
Top Ten Reasons Why Teens Drop Out of School 52
Discussion of the Issues & National Research 54
Tarrant County Menu of Evidenced-informed Recommendations 56
1. Court-Based and Court Diversion Program 56
VII. Evaluation 60
VIII. Committee Recommendation for Action 61
IX. Appendix – Recommended Program Contacts 63
3 | P a g e
Membership February 2, 2012 – December 15, 2012
Community Chair: Sylvia Nichols, LPCS, Arlington ISD Project Development
Prevention Sub-Committee
Curtis Amos Everman Superintendent, Student Services
Rebecca Barksdale Tarrant County
Chelsea Belote Texas Appleseed
Katherine Bisbee Counselor, ACH Child & Family Services
Jerry Buford Bedford Police Department
Wendy Carrington AISD Director, Dropout Prevention
Bill Daily Staff Attorney, TX Appleseed
Linda De Leon Principal, AISD Speer Elementary
Andrew Fitzpatrick Vice president operations, Boys & Girls Clubs,
Arlington
Deborah Fowler Deputy Director, Texas Appleseed
Kathryn Freeman Texas Appleseed
Stephanie Gillespie Arlington Police Department
Carole Hagler AISD, State and Federal Programs
Amy Hernandez Director, Truancy Program Eagle Mt.-Saginaw ISD
Bowie Hogg AISD School Board
Noreen Kennedy Program Coordinator, Big HOPE, Big Brother Big
Sisters
Todd Landry Executive Director, Lena Pope Home, Inc.
Ricardo Lucero Executive Director, Arlington Police Department
Marc Marchand Arlington Public Library
Sean Milligan Everman ISD
Abby Mitchell Dispute Resolution Services
Jeni McGarry Commissioner Andy Nguyen’s Office
Curtis Petties Arlington police
Kelly Rodriguez Assist. Precinct Administrator, Commissioner Andy
Nguyen
Sandra Romero Summit International Prep
Carolyn Sims Northeast Sub-Courthouse
Regina Smith TCPH-Nurse Family Partnership
Trey Webster Family specialist, Lean Pope Home, Inc.
Richard Williamson Truancy Consultant, Volunteer, J. P. Precinct 1
Steve Wurm Boys & Girls Clubs, Arlington
Intervention Sub-Committee
Johnny Barrington Lead Truancy Officer, HEB ISD
Scott Brown Arlington Police Department
Tanisha Collins AISD Attendance Offic – Lamar HS
Bill Daily Staff Attorney, TX Appleseed
Deborah Fowler Deputy Director, Texas Appleseed
Kathryn Freeman Texas Appleseed
Randy Gardner Technical Sargent Community Services, Bedford Police Department
Jodi Heilbrunn National Center for School Engagement
Amy Hernandez Director, Truancy Program Eagle Mt.-Saginaw ISD
4 | P a g e
Virginia Hoft Santa Fe Adolescent Services
Bowie Hogg AISD School Board
Liz Hummert Arlington Police Department
Bobby Jester Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD
James King Executive Director, Everman ISD
Randy Nyhus AISD Attendance Office, Martin Network
Kenneth Page Everman ISD
Loester Posey Director Student Discipline & Placement, FWISD
Linda Reeves Human Resources and Student Services, Eagle mountain-Saginaw
ISD
Chris Rose Truancy officer, Lake Worth ISD
Barry Smith Director for Attendance Control FWISD
Management Sub-Committee
Brian Harris, Chair Harris Consulting
Hon. Linda Bierman-Davis Justice of the Peace
Carlin Caliman Juvenile Case Coordinator, Arlington Municipal Court
Scott Donaldson Assistant Coordinator, TCCD Criminal Justice Training Center
Debbie Durko Municipal Court Administrator, North Richland Hills Court
Nancy Griggs Tarrant County Precinct 2
James Hawthorne Assistant Chief, Arlington Police Department
Dr. Nathanial Hearne HEB ISD
Amy Hernandez Director, Truancy Program Eagle Mt.-Saginaw ISD
Krystal James Youth & Family Specialist, Commissioner Roy Brooks
Karen Kayser Director Student & Staff Services, Commissioner Andy Nguyen
Steve Moore Chief of Police, Hurst Police Department
Ken Shetter Safe City Commission
Isaac Smith FWISD
Les Smith Tarrant County Criminal Justice Coordinator
Hon. Ralph Swearingin Tarrant County Justice of the Peace
Randy Turner Director, Tarrant county Juvenile Services
Kynda Turpin Administrative Clerk, JP2
Jimmy Walker AISD Assist. Superintendent, Administration
Sharen Wilson Judge, Criminal District Court 1
Richard Williamson Volunteer
5 | P a g e
Background:
In 2010, Every Student Counts: A REPORT ADDRESSING THE PROBLEMS RELATED
TO TRUANCY AND SCHOOL DROPOUTS AND SOME PROPOSED SOLUTIONS was
presented to a group of Tarrant County school districts, police departments, juvenile justice and court
staff, and county commissioners. A community based planning committee was established to develop a
Tarrant County Truancy Plan.
February 2, 2012, a community group of some 40 persons met at the Arlington ISD Woodrow
Counts Administration Building, Arlington Independent School District to discuss the attendance,
truancy, delinquency, and court issues plaguing Tarrant County. Representatives from Texas Appleseed,
an Austin-based policy think tank and The National Center for School Engagement, a Colorado-based
research firm joined the conversation. The basis for the conversation was the reference to pages 14, 55,
75, 86, and 154 from the 2011 North Central Texas Countywide Criminal Justice Community Plan. In
summary of that meeting, the group decided to form an open county-wide planning committee. The
committee would meet to identify specific concerns, issues, roadblocks and evidence based successful
strategies. The target product would be a Tarrant County Truancy Plan.
On February 29, 2012, an open invitation meeting established three major activities to be
accomplished.
1. The need for some targeted qualitative assessment. With funding from the County
Commissioner’s Court, Arlington, Everman, and Fort Worth Independent School Districts were
selected to participate in a student focus group study in May 2012. The Center for School
Engagement was selected to complete the study.
2. Development of a three component plan that had flexibility for all the diverse communities
within Tarrant County under the headings of successful evidence based:
a. Prevention Strategies,
b. Intervention Strategies,
c. Management Strategies, and
d. Acknowledgement that the local school district(s), police department(s), and court
system(s) would need to meet and select components in each strategy area to turn the
growing tide of chronic absence, truancy, suspension, expulsion, dropouts, and
delinquency.
3. Development of an Evaluation Plan for documentation of effectiveness of the three components.
Acknowledging the communication challenge from school district to nonprofit to governmental units
provided an awareness of potential stumbling blocks. Following this activity and discussion of lesson to
be learned, the group selected a subcommittee of interest. Each sub-committee (Prevention, Intervention
and Management) elected a chair, recorder, and developed a work group roster and schedule. Each sub-
committee was asked to consider ground rules that included:
Culture, ethnicity and language barriers in every program discussion and suggestion.
6 | P a g e
For every program proposal, identify a “must have” list of partners and “must have”
Communication process.
Recommend three (3) “Carrot” approaches for every “Stick” approach.
Follow the recommended Outline when submitting a strategic evidence based program.
On April 25, 2012, the open invitation committee welcomed new participants and met at the Tarrant
County College District NW Campus, Michael Saenz Conference Room and reviewed a quote by
Frederick Douglass, “it’s easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” Most of the meeting
time was devoted to subcommittee work group members presenting successful evidenced based
programs. Prior to the meeting adjournment, each subcommittee reported on current progress to the
committee at large. Each subcommittee was challenged to meet prior to the next large group meeting in
order to expedite completion of a draft plan.
On June 6, 2012, the open invitation committee continued to welcome new participants and met
at the Pat May Center in Hurst-Euless-Bedford Independent School District. Arlington, Everman, and
Fort Worth ISD representatives reported on the student focus groups held in May at two middle schools,
one junior high school and three high schools by the Center for School Engagement, Colorado Springs,
Colorado. The consensus was that although CDs were given as participation incentives, students
appeared to just be pleased to be asked their opinions and not necessarily primarily motivated by an
incentive.
A narrative document will be produced by the Center for School Engagement in mid-July and finalized
in August. An outline for Truancy Plan completion was presented by the chair to include:
Collection of subcommittee recommendations of successful evidence based programs by June
30, 2012.
Development of a Table of Contents; narrative and plan compilation in July and August.
School Start Window completion September 28, 2012. (This is the deadline that Texas Education
Agency gives school districts to enroll all students without being charged with students as
dropouts.)
Document sent to committee for review and edit suggestions in September 2012.
October 2012 Subcommittee meeting to discuss and submit edit suggestions
In late August, the National Center for School Engagement completed its report, “Teach from the
Heart,” from three focus groups of middle or junior high school students and three focus groups of ninth
through twelfth grade students in three county districts. Insights identified included:
Many home environments dampen, rather than reinforce their child’s motivation to strive for
excellence in school.
Students do not seem to make a distinction between on-campus and off-campus environments.
Police tickets seem to serve to alienate students from school and seem to be the entrance to what
is commonly known as the “school-to-prison pipeline.”
Students presented mixed opinions of discipline.
Academic achievement seems to be hindered by policies such as locking students out of class
when tardy or without an identification badge.
Student motivation varies from satisfied to “just pass” and get to the next grade to a strong focus
on “doing your best” that impacts your future options.
7 | P a g e
The National Center’s report included several options to address both disciplinary and attendance
issues. Next steps included the following options:
Do not withhold learning as a punishment.
Address the root causes of disciplinary infractions through restorative justice practices.
Require effective classroom management training for all teachers.
Increase the frequency of unscheduled classroom observations by principals and master teachers.
8 | P a g e
Every Student Counts
Positive Solutions in Curbing the Links that Connect
Absence to Dropping Out of School and Delinquency
Executive Summary
Background:
In 2010, Every Student Counts: A REPORT ADDRESSING THE PROBLEMS RELATED
TO TRUANCY AND SCHOOL DROPOUTS AND SOME PROPOSED SOLUTIONS was
presented to a group of Tarrant County school districts, police departments, juvenile justice and court
staff, and county commissioners. A community based planning committee was established to develop a
Tarrant County Truancy Plan.
February 2, 2012, a community group of some 40 persons met at the Arlington ISD Woodrow
Counts Administration Building, Arlington Independent School District to discuss the attendance,
truancy, delinquency, and court issues plaguing Tarrant County. Representatives from Texas Appleseed,
an Austin-based policy think tank and The National Center for School Engagement, a Colorado-based
research firm joined the conversation. The basis for the conversation was the reference to pages 14, 55,
75, 86, and 154 from the 2011 North Central Texas Countywide Criminal Justice Community Plan. In
summary of that meeting, the group decided to form an open county-wide planning committee. The
committee would meet to identify specific concerns, issues, roadblocks and evidence based successful
strategies. The target product would be a Tarrant County Truancy Plan.
In early spring 2012, open invitation meetings were held across the county and established three
major activities to be accomplished.
4. The need for some targeted qualitative assessment. With funding from the County
Commissioner’s Court, Arlington, Everman, and Fort Worth Independent School Districts were
selected to participate in a student focus group study in May 2012. The Center for School
Engagement was selected to complete the study.
5. Development of a three component plan that had flexibility for all the diverse communities
within Tarrant County under the headings of successful evidence based:
a. Prevention Strategies,
b. Intervention Strategies,
9 | P a g e
c. Management Strategies, and
d. Acknowledgement that the local school district(s), police department(s), and court
system(s) would need to meet and select components in each strategy area to turn the
growing tide of chronic absence, truancy, suspension, expulsion, dropouts, and
delinquency.
6. Development of an Evaluation Plan for documentation of effectiveness of the three components.
Acknowledging the communication challenge from school district to nonprofit to governmental units
provided an awareness of potential stumbling blocks. Following this activity and discussion of lesson to
be learned, the group selected a subcommittee of interest. Each sub-committee (Prevention, Intervention
and Management) elected a chair, recorder, and developed a work group roster and schedule. Each sub-
committee was asked to consider ground rules that included:
Culture, ethnicity and language barriers in every program discussion and suggestion.
For every program proposal, identify a “must have” list of partners and “must have”
Communication process.
Recommend three (3) “Carrot” approaches for every “Stick” approach.
Follow the recommended Outline when submitting a strategic evidence based program.
During the spring 2012 semester, the committee welcomed new participants and met in large and
subcommittee work groups. Work acknowledged a quote by Frederick Douglass, “it’s easier to build
strong children than to repair broken men.” An outline for Truancy Plan completion was presented by
the chair to include:
Collection of subcommittee recommendations of successful evidence based programs by June
30, 2012.
Development of a Table of Contents; narrative and plan compilation in July and August.
School Start Window completion September 28, 2012. (This is the deadline that Texas Education
Agency gives school districts to enroll all students without being charged with students as
dropouts.)
Document sent to committee for review and edit suggestions in September 2012.
October 2012 meeting to review a final draft of the Plan.
10 | P a g e
In late August, the National Center for School Engagement completed its report, “Teach from the
Heart,” from three focus groups of middle or junior high school students and three focus groups of ninth
through twelfth grade students in three county districts. Insights identified included:
Many home environments dampen, rather than reinforce their child’s motivation to strive for
excellence in school.
Students do not seem to make a distinction between on-campus and off-campus environments.
Police tickets seem to serve to alienate students from school and seem to be the entrance to what
is commonly known as the “school-to-prison pipeline.”
Students presented mixed opinions of discipline.
Academic achievement seems to be hindered by policies such as locking students out of class
when tardy or without an identification badge.
Student motivation varies from satisfied to “just pass” and get to the next grade to a strong focus
on “doing your best” that impacts your future options.
The National Center’s report included several options to address both disciplinary and attendance
issues. Next steps included the following options:
Do not withhold learning as a punishment.
Address the root causes of disciplinary infractions through restorative justice practices.
Require effective classroom management training for all teachers.
Increase the frequency of unscheduled classroom observations by principals and master
teachers.
11 | P a g e
The Tarrant County Issues:
Chronic Absence, Truancy, Suspension, Expulsion, Dropping-Out, Delinquency
Demographics of Tarrant County by School District
Organization
# o
f Stu
den
ts
African
Am
. %
Hisp
anic %
Wh
ite %
Lim
ited E
ng
lish
Pro
ficient
Discip
linary
Placem
ents
Eco
.
Disad
van
taged
%
At –
Risk
%
4 Y
r. Co
mp
letion
Dro
p O
ut %
Atten
dan
ce
Texas 4,912,385 12 50.3 31.2 59.2 16.9 1.9 46.3 7.3 95.5
Region 11 540,157 13.8 32.8 46 47.8 14.3 1.7 39 6.6 95.7
Arlington 64,380 23.2 41.8 26.2 23.3 2.1 63.1 52.3 8.2 95.6
Azle 5,754 0.9 16.9 78.6 3.8 2.5 47.2 38.5 0.3 94.7
Birdville 23,441 6.7 36.9 48.3 16.1 1.6 54.8 45.0 6.0 95.7
Carroll 7,642 1.9 6.4 81.0 0.6 0.3 1.9 9.3 0 96.6
Castleberry 3,604 1.2 73.8 23.4 29.7 1.4 84.5 76.1 7.8 95.5
Crowley 15,141 40.2 21.6 26.2 10.3 2.6 53.4 44.7 8.1 95.4
Everman 5,056 44.1 47.0 6.3 23.5 4.4 85.5 70.2 9.9 95.1
Fort Worth 81,511 23.4 59.2 14.3 28.3 2.5 75.6 48.3 17.2 94.9
Grapevine/Colleyville 13,614 4.2 19.8 64.2 8.3 0.9 20.0 22.2 1.0 96.5
Hurst/Euless/Bedford 21,000 15.6 26.9 45.6 11.8 1.0 50.5 37.0 1.9 96.5
Keller 32,613 7.7 18.2 63.3 5.5 0.6 20.1 26.8 2.7 95.7
Lake Worth 3,170 11.7 53.7 31.0 17.5 2.5 75.0 53.6 4.5 95.0
Mansfield 32,208 25.6 23.7 40.2 10.5 1.4 37.1 33.2 5.2 96.2
Saginaw 16,664 9.5 35.0 48.0 7.2 1.4 40.1 38.0 4.4 95.5
White Settlement 6,271 6.4 32.9 54.8 8.1 2.5 53.6 45.2 4.6 94.4
Source: Texas Academic Excellence Indicator System, 2011 (2010-2011 data)
Referring to the chart above, Region 11 must be acknowledged as larger than Tarrant County
with small districts in rural areas, but does provide some comparison for county-wide issues. Each
district must identify its own ranking within the community and make decisions related to actions to be
taken.
Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning Suggested Programs for
PREVENTION – Chronic Absence
Program 1: Truancy Prevention Mediation Program, Dispute Resolution Services of NTx
Ages 4 – 12
Summary: During the 2009 school year, Arlington ISD began a pilot program with Dispute Resolution
Services (DRS), the agency that Tarrant County contracts with for mediation services. Part of their
contract with the county includes working with local school districts to offer mediation services. In
2009, five AISD elementary schools, selected because of their lower Average Daily Attendance (ADA)
rates were chosen by AISD administrators to participate in the project. Students with excessive
12 | P a g e
absences or tardies were referred to DRS. DRS acts as an independent non-biased third party to contact
the parents of the student and set up a meeting with the parent and the school. DRS provides trained
volunteer mediators that work with the school and the parent to find solutions to improve the student’s
attendance. Often simple solutions such as assisting a parent with transportation, an alarm clock or
childcare are the answer. In other cases, impressing upon the family the importance of attendance and
of their legal responsibility to ensure that their child attends school is all that is needed.
Important Definitions per Attendance Works (www.attendanceworks.org):
Average Daily Attendance: The percentage of enrolled students who attend school each day.
Satisfactory Attendance: Missing 5% or less of school in an academic year.
Chronic Absence: Missing 10% or more of school in an academic year for any reason—excused or
unexcused.
Severe Chronic Absence: Missing 20% or more days of school per year –approximately two months of
school.
Program 2: Teacher Home Visits
Summary: Chapel Hill Academy (elementary charter school), initiated Teacher Home Visits prior to
the first day of elementary school. Teachers made pre-first day home visits to approximately 40 students
who had been identified in the prior year as having indications of chronic absences or tardies.
Program 3: Attendance Incentives for Parents/Students
Summary: Chapel Hill Academy (elementary charter school) has implemented a wide array of
incentives to promote certain behaviors for parents and children. Specifically for parents, the use of
incentives has been a positive predictor of success. Rewards have included flat screen televisions, Blu-
ray DVD’s, iPads or iPhones, laptop computers, etc. Incentives can be powerful motivating factors in
any person’s life. The use of incentives to promote on-time attendance for students is not new and is
implemented in many schools. For elementary levels, parent incentives can be a stronger factor toward
the on-time attendance for students. While a yearly incentive can be useful, a shorter term incentive
promotion can be more productive. Six (6) week promotions provide an opportunity to encourage a
family to “get back on track” despite earlier problems with attendance in the year. A subsequent lower
value promotion for students is also recommended. These incentives can include free dress days or
lower value items (gift cards, etc.).
Program 4: On-Site Therapeutic Family Counseling
Summary: For many low-income families, there are a number of barriers that may inhibit their ability to
ensure their children are in school on time. These familial issues may include trauma, domestic
violence, lack of familial communication, basic life skills, etc. Professional counseling has shown to
13 | P a g e
significantly improve these aspects for families. In addition, students with improved family/home
stability generally improve academically, socially, and behaviorally.
Program 5: Santa Fe Youth Services Strengthening Families Program – Ages 9 - 16
Summary: Santa Fe Youth Services has been implementing The Strengthening Families Program (SFP)
for over 10 years. SFP is an evidence-based program where parents and youth attend separate groups for
the first hour, then work together in family sessions in the second hour. All of the sessions include
interactive activities that promote positive relationships and are facilitated by specially trained Santa Fe
Youth Services staff. The groups are held in various locations throughout Tarrant County, including
Arlington, Keller, Crowley and other surrounding municipalities. All parent groups are offered in
English and Spanish.
School Counselors, Parent Liaisons, community members, Juvenile and Family Courts, CPS, and
parents can contact Santa Fe Youth Services for information and to enroll in the program. Parents are
given a brief overview of the program and the date and time, sent an Informational Packet and an
invitation to attend an Orientation Group.
While participating in the SFP, youth learn how to deal with peer pressure, how to handle angry feelings
and manage stress, how to choose positive friends, and how to appreciate their families/caregivers. The
parents learn what to expect from their teenagers, how to set limits and discipline children in a caring
manner, and how to have a greater understanding of the challenges of their teenager. The family learns
to solve problems together, to communicate and appreciate each other’s views, and how to have fun
together. Incentives are offered each week such as dinner, transportation, childcare for those children
too young to participate, and a bag of groceries.
There are 14 educational classes, held for 14 consecutive weeks. Each week’s session includes the youth
and parent group and the family group. Enrollment is accepted until the third week and make-up groups
are offered to those who are absent. Each family is contacted weekly by phone to ensure they will be
able to attend and follow up on any issues or concerns they may be experiencing.
Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning Suggested Programs for
INTERVENTION – Truancy
What is Truancy in Texas?
Truancy is the absence of a student without a valid excuse from school or class during a regular
school day.
The Texas Education Code, Sections 25.085 (a) and (b), state that a child who is at least six years
of age, or who is younger than six years of age and has previously been enrolled in first grade,
and has not reached the child’s 18th
birthday shall attend school each school day for the entire
period the program of instruction is provided.
If the student fails to attend school without a valid excuse for 10 days or parts of days within a
six month period or for 3 days or parts of days within a four-week period, the parent and student
are subject to prosecution.
14 | P a g e
How do districts respond to truancy issues?
Students are referred to their respective District Attendance/Truancy Officer who will contact the
student and conference with them and/or their parents. A warning letter regarding the student’s
attendance and stating the consequences of violating truancy laws shall be mailed to the student’s
residence.
Cases will be filed in court, and consequences can result in fines up to $500 for each day the
student remains truant from school. Other consequences are loss of VOE (TEA) forms necessary
for driver’s education, suspension of driver’s license or permit, referral to the juvenile probation
department, and/or a warrant for the arrest of the parent or student may be issued.
The Compulsory School Attendance Policy states that 90% attendance in each class or subject
offered is mandatory for all students. If a student fails to attend 90% of the days of instruction,
credit may be lost, and promotion to the next grade may be in jeopardy.
It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian to call the school by a district designated time
each day a student is absent to explain the absence of the student. Absences not cleared will
remain unexcused.
Program 1: Intervention Attendance Incentive Program (AIP), H-E-B I.S.D. Truancy Department –
Ages 9 - 12
Summary: The Attendance Incentive Program (AIP) was implemented at the beginning of the school
year 2010-2011 as a pilot program to address chronic attendance issues in a positive approach as
opposed to a punitive approach. The initial target population for the pilot program was 4th
, 5th
, and 6th
graders (elementary campuses) who had at least 5 “incidents” the previous 6-week period (an incident
being defined as an unexcused absence or a tardy to school).
At the beginning of each 6-week period, the campus administrator identifies 20 – 40 students
meeting target criteria. An attendance / truancy officer visits the student at school and explains the
details of the AIP, as well as the incentive for meeting the requirements. The parent is also contacted and
made aware of the AIP and the participation requirements. The student and parent are informed that the
student cannot have an unexcused absence or tardy during the 6-week period in order to be eligible to
participate. If the student does not meet those requirements, then he/she will not be eligible to
participate.
The incentives range from a field trip to tour Cowboys Stadium; attending a Dallas Mavericks
game; attending a Texas Rangers game; attending a party at IT’Z Pizza and Games; or Games 2 U party
at the campus. The activities are provided at no cost to the parent or student. The bus transportation is
provided by the District and is funded by the campuses that have students participating in that particular
AIP. The remainder of the cost is covered by a non-profit organization in the community. Chaperones
for the students include the truancy department staff as well as volunteers from the campuses and the
community.
Program 2: Williamson County Neighborhood Conference Committee– Ages 13 - 15
15 | P a g e
Summary: The Neighborhood Conference Committee (NCC) of Williamson County consists of local
citizens in the community providing services to students who are first-time truant offenders. The student
and his/her family are referred to NCC by the local school district. The family meets with a panel of
volunteers to establish the root of the truancy problem. Together the student, family, and the NCC panel
develop a positive action plan. The action plan outlines the requirements that the student must
successfully complete without having to go through a formal court hearing. The action plan requires the
student to develop a graduation plan, a career plan, and to participate in appropriate activities such as
community service, mentoring, and/or expressing an apology to a victim. The action plan may also
include referrals for support services such as parent/child mediations and parent groups. NCC also
provides an avenue for expressing the community’s concern to the student to help the student generate a
sense of responsibility and opportunities for personal growth and development In terms of financing,
two Justices of the Peace charge a $5 fee on all court cases (there is a provision in TX law that permits
such a fee) to help fund the NCC.
Also, the school districts pay on-site coordinators for the committee. The NCC also landed a
$50,000 grant to pay for a case manager who complements the work of the coordinator. The case
manager handles the day-to-day details, while the coordinator works on networking and connecting with
volunteers.
Program 3: Lena Pope’s Second Opportunity for Success – Ages 11- 18
Summary: Lena Pope Home’s Second Opportunity for Success (SOS) program – The SOS program is
a strengths-based program focused on building relationships with both youth and parents. Referrals
have come from Ft. Worth Police Department and surrounding police departments as well as the Ft.
Worth ISD truancy court. Families have also self-referred.
The SOS program is a diversionary program that was originally developed in 1999 through
collaboration with Lena Pope Home (LPH) and other community members including Tarrant County
Juvenile Services as an alternative to incarceration for a first offense.This program gives youth an
oppportunity for a second chance. It has evolved over the years and been adapted to provide services
for different populations. The program utilizes a strengths-based approach to personal responsibility.
The curriculum is compiled of evidence-based practices and has been developed through research on a
variety of topics addressing issues leading to delinquent behavior. Topic areas include school
attendance, substance abuse, peer pressure, choices, decision making, family relationships substance
abuse, etc. This program has been shown to be successful with a first time truancy youth and chronic
truancy.
A referral is made to the SOS program by the referring agent. Referring agents could be: direct
parent referral, school counselors, administrative personnel, truancy officers, J. P. courts, etc. The
family is then contacted by a representative form the program in an effort to engage the family. Once
an intake date is set, the family participates in an initial assessment. This is an opportunity to determine
factors contributing to the reason for the referral.
This program is mobile. It has been provided in Arlington, Hurst, Euless, and is currently offered
in one southwest Ft. Worth location and the city of Azle.
16 | P a g e
There are seven (7) psycho-educational classes. Each week’s session is all-inclusive so a family can
start at any time. They will need to complete all seven classes before graduating to the follow up
component of the program. The follow up component of the program lasts a minimum of 90 days. This
includes school visits, phone contact, follow up parent meetings if requested, and case management.
The target age group is as young as 11 and up to age 18.
Program 4: AimTruancy Solutions – Ages 11 - 18
Summary: Solutions (Aim) is an early identification and intervention program for chronic truants.
Specifically, Aim is a year-long, innovative truancy reduction program that not only identifies at-risk
students, but also gets them back into the classroom, on track to graduate, and out of the juvenile
courts. Aim partners with schools, law enforcement, juvenile justice, community based
organizations, and other agencies that recognize the link between truancy reduction and student
success.
Aim was developed in 2005 by Paul Pottinger, PhD, a clinical psychologist (former Executive
Director of Dallas Challenge) and Shelton Stogner, head of the Dallas County Truancy Enforcement
Center at the request of the Dallas County Commissioners Court. Over the past seven years, Dallas-
based Aim has grown throughout Texas, California, Louisiana, and Kentucky successfully partnering
with hundreds of schools and thousands of students as part of various truancy reduction and dropout
prevention initiatives.
AimTruancy Solutions is a proven truancy reduction program by which students build success through
two key functions: mentoring and monitoring.
Mentoring: intense, bilingual, one-on-one mentoring with carefully chosen, educated and
trained mentors, provides the positive support and guidance that has proven to help truant youth
change their thinking, behaviors, and lives.
Monitoring: State-of-the-art handheld GPS technology starts truants on the path to
accountability, allows them to opt-out of bad behavior, and allows for immediate intervention
when necessary.
Program 5: Parenting with Love and Limits, Lena Pope Home – Ages 10 - 18
Summary: Lena Pope Home’s Parenting with Love and Limits is a recognized, evidence-based
program developed by Dr. Scott Sells. The model is a blending of structural and strategic family
therapy and is manualized. Consultation is provided on a regular basis by the developer of the model to
ensure adherence to the model. Parents and youth meet together in the first hour then separate in the
second hour to address the topic presented more specifically. There are six groups. Once a group
begins, it is considered closed. New families can not be added.
The family therapist that provides the groups for the adults will continue to provide “coaching”,
i.e. family therapy for at least 3 sessions to assist the family in practicing what they have learned. This
program was originally funded by a grant throught the State of Texas Prevention and Early
Intervention Department. The funding ended two years ago. Referrals have been accepted from school
districts, police departments, the FWISD Truancy Intervention project and self referral.
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Parenting with Love and Limits®(PLL) is the first evidence-based program of its kind to combine a 6-
week parent education and group therapy program with 4 or more individual “coaching” (family
therapy) sessions for adolescents and their parents. PLL is designed for youth between 10 and 18. The
Parenting with Love and Limits is a program developed to work with pre-adjudicated youth.
Program 6: Santa Fe Youth Services – Reconnecting Youth Program – Grades 9 – 12
Summary: Reconnecting Youth Program (RY) is an intervention program for reducing drop-out rates,
drug abuse, and increase students’ mood management. The evidence-based program has been
recognized by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institute on Drug
Abuse as a model program to help students learn, practice, and apply decision-making skills, personal
control strategies, and interpersonal communication techniques.
The RY Program incorporates social support and life skills training into a daily, semester-long
class using a 52-lesson daily curriculum. The class meets daily for a full semester as part of the regular
school curriculum and is taken as an elective credit. The program is an approved Texas Education
Agency (TEA) Innovative Course.
Students who successfully complete RY receive .5 state elective credit. RY classes are facilitated
by a specially trained Santa Fe Youth Services staff member who excels in working with high school
youth. RY has proven to be a life-changing program, providing high school students the opportunity
to take charge of their own destiny, and set themselves on a pth towards indipendence and success. The
key features integrated into the daily RY class are group support and caring to enhance feeling of
acceptance and belonging; life skills training to enhance protective factors by devloping problem
solving skills and learning to manage mod to help with peers and family members; monitoring of
program goals to help establish and maintain personal control; and, school bonding/social activities to
foster healthy choices in friends and activities.
Program 7: Success Lasts a Lifetime with Job Corps – Age 16 and older
Summary: Job Corps is a free education and training program that helps young people learn a career,
earn a high school diploma or GED, and find and keep a good job. For eligible young people at least
16 years of age that qualify as low income, Job Corps provides the all-around skills needed to succeed
in a career and in life.
Job Corps is the nation's largest career technical training and education program for young people at
least 16 years of age that qualify as low income. A voluntary program administered by the U.S.
Department of Labor, Job Corps provides eligible young men and women with an opportunity to gain
the experience they need to begin a career or advance to higher education. Job Corps has 125 centers
nationwide, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Job Corps offers hands-on training in
more than 100 career technical area including: automotive and machine repair, construction, finance
and business services, health care, hospitality, information technology, manufacturing, renewable
resources, and many more. All training programs are aligned with industry certifications and are
designed to meet the requirements of today's careers. Job Corps also offers the opportunity to earn a
high school diploma or a GED for those youth who don't have either. For youth who already have a
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high school diploma, Job Corps can help them prepare for college through partnerships with local
colleges. Youth must live on campus.
Resources are also available for English Language Learners. Courses in independent living,
employability skills, and social skills are offered to all Job Corps students in order to help them make
the transition into the workplace.
The program includes:
Career Preparation Period (CPP)
Career Development Period (CDP)
Career Transition Period (CTP)
Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning Suggested Programs for
MANAGEMENT – Suspension, Expulsion, Dropping-Out and Delinquency
Problem Solving Model
Summary: The Criminal Justice system needs to effectively address both the social and criminal factors
contributing to chronic absence and truancy from school utilizing a problem-solving model that works in
conjunction with a multitude of resources throughout the community.
Through multiple discussions, the overwhelming theme was the desire to find a more effective
way of “working” truancy cases that has reached the level of the court system. County Commissioners
can appoint a judge, but currently, truancy cases are referred to the Justice of the Peace court or
municipal courts in the school’s dedicated county precinct and are prosecuted under the Texas Education
Code Sec. 25.094 Failure to Attend School, a class C Misdemeanor. In the State of Texas, a class C
Misdemeanor is punishable by a fine only, not to exceed $500. This level of offense and the size of
Tarrant County require that truancy related cases are filed in either a Justice or Municipal Court or a
Constitutional County Court. Tarrant County currently has no provisions for truancy cases to be heard in
a Constitutional County Court.
Social Problems
Human Problems
= Legal
Problems
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During the planning process, the subcommittee quickly identified the fact that the dedicated
court was the key factor in an effective county-wide plan to address this issue and recommend that the
county make the creation of this court a priority. A “snap-shot” of what the court should look like was
developed.
1. The dedicated court should be under the authority of the Constitutional County Court.
2. The court should work closely with social service providers identified and utilized through the
intervention phase.
3. The court should be implemented through a partnership with dedicated school district(s).
4. The court should initially place a focus on cases being filed within a particular High School
network or within a particular county precinct. This will allow for a smooth transition and data
collection of effectiveness.
5. The court should be comprised of the following key components:
Judge To oversee the management process for absentee cases utilizing social services through arrangements with the prosecutor and hear cases that are ultimately being tried as criminal actions.
Prosecutor
A prosecutor that specializes in working with schools and law enforcement officials to determine underlying causes of chronic absences and differentiate between criminal behavior and social deficiencies.
Basic Court Staff (Judge, Bailiff, Court
Reporter, Coordinator) To conduct the daily operations of the court.
Program Manager* To coordinate and oversee the various social services and to work with directly with the prosecutor and families throughout the process.
Central Information Sharing System*
To provide a centralized location for an electronic case file in order to efficiently and accurately track families and their progress.
Committed School A district that is willing to actively contribute resources to work with the
Court
Schools
Police
Social Services
Families
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District* court, law enforcement and social services to make the program work.
Committed Local Police Department
A department that is willing to contribute resources and train officers in providing appropriate information to the school district, social services and the court about at-risk families and chronic offenders.
Committed Constable’s Office
A Constable that is willing to work with the court and Program Manager to assist in serving court papers in a timely manner and assisting with home visits as necessary.
Structured Intake Process
To provide a means of evaluating the family’s needs quickly and efficiently and identify resources that have been provided or offered leading up to the court referral.
Interpreter An independent language interpreter to have the ability to communicate with family members in their spoken language.
Transportation* To address areas of the county where public transportation is scarce or non-existent and ultimately serves as a road block (or excuse) to court attendance.
Assessment*
A way to measure the effectiveness of the services provided, monitor school attendance once services are complete and provide continual support for the family to prevent recidivism. Social service providers support partners.
* Denotes what is seen as a crucial “key to success” for the program.
FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS by all Committee Members Present
Each sub-committee made recommendations. Following the posting of those recommendations,
presentation, and discussion, some recommendations were combined or modified. Each committee
member was given five weighted votes. Number 1 post-it was to be place on the person’s first
recommendation, then second, third, fourth, and then fifth action recommendation. Post-it numbers were
counted.
The prioritized recommendations follow:
1. Prepare Final Publication: Executive Summary; Power Point; and add a title Tarrant County
Truancy Solutions
This recommendation received fifteen #1 and one #3 selection
2. Send to Commissioner’s Court through Les Smith; have Commissioner’s Court communicate
with Superintendents and other stakeholders.
This recommendation received eight #2 selections and one for #1, #3, #4, #5.
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3. Conduct a County-wide Needs Assessment or Localized with Identified Partners or Local Policy
and Practice Surveys ; Design a metrics of what data will be collected
This was a combination of two recommendations. One received six #3 selections and the
other six #4 selections.
4. Evaluations – Identify a point person that will collect data; Consider Stephan Ateek and rely on
agencies to report data; data to be collected must be identified prior to beginning action plan.
This received five #4 selections with no selections for #1 or #2 and one selection for 3
and #5.
5. Conduct a county-wide truancy summit including ISDs, law enforcement, social services, courts,
and other stakeholders and hold annual follow-up meetings.
The summit received ten #5 selections; with the follow-up meetings receiving five #5
selections.
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Every Student Counts
Positive Solutions in Curbing the Links that Connect
Absence to Dropping Out of School and Delinquency
Comprehensive Report
The Issues:
Chronic Absence, Truancy, Suspension, Expulsion, Dropping-Out, Delinquency
Demographics of Tarrant County by School District
Organization
# o
f Stu
den
ts
Africa
n A
m. %
Hisp
an
ic %
Wh
ite %
Lim
ited E
ng
lish
Pro
ficient
Discip
lina
ry
Pla
cem
ents
Eco
.
Disa
dv
an
tag
ed
%
At –
Risk
%
4 Y
r.
Co
mp
letion
Dro
p O
ut %
Atten
da
nce
Texas 4,912,385 12 50.3 31.2 59.2 16.9 1.9 46.3 7.3 95.5
Region 11 540,157 13.8 32.8 46 47.8 14.3 1.7 39 6.6 95.7
Arlington 64,380 23.2 41.8 26.2 23.3 2.1 63.1 52.3 8.2 95.6
Azle 5,754 0.9 16.9 78.6 3.8 2.5 47.2 38.5 0.3 94.7
Birdville 23,441 6.7 36.9 48.3 16.1 1.6 54.8 45.0 6.0 95.7
Carroll 7,642 1.9 6.4 81.0 0.6 0.3 1.9 9.3 0 96.6
Castleberry 3,604 1.2 73.8 23.4 29.7 1.4 84.5 76.1 7.8 95.5
Crowley 15,141 40.2 21.6 26.2 10.3 2.6 53.4 44.7 8.1 95.4
Everman 5,056 44.1 47.0 6.3 23.5 4.4 85.5 70.2 9.9 95.1
Fort Worth 81,511 23.4 59.2 14.3 28.3 2.5 75.6 48.3 17.2 94.9
Grapevine/Collyville 13,614 4.2 19.8 64.2 8.3 0.9 20.0 22.2 1.0 96.5
Hurst/Euless/Bedford 21,000 15.6 26.9 45.6 11.8 1.0 50.5 37.0 1.9 96.5
Keller 32,613 7.7 18.2 63.3 5.5 0.6 20.1 26.8 2.7 95.7
Lake Worth 3,170 11.7 53.7 31.0 17.5 2.5 75.0 53.6 4.5 95.0
Mansfield 32,208 25.6 23.7 40.2 10.5 1.4 37.1 33.2 5.2 96.2
Saginaw 16,664 9.5 35.0 48.0 7.2 1.4 40.1 38.0 4.4 95.5
White Settlement 6,271 6.4 32.9 54.8 8.1 2.5 53.6 45.2 4.6 94.4
Source: Texas Academic Excellence Indicator System, 2011 (2010-2011 data)
Referring to the chart above, Region 11 must be acknowledged as larger than Tarrant County
with small districts in rural areas, but does provide some comparison for county-wide issues. Each
district must identify its own ranking within the community and make decisions related to actions to be
taken.
Chronic Absence (presented from AttendanceWorks.org)
Chronic absence is a measure of how much school a student misses for any reason. It is a broader
measure than truancy, which only tracks unexcused absences. Starting in the early grades, chronic
absence levels can reach remarkably high levels. National data suggests one in 10 kindergartners misses
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a month of school every year. In some districts, it runs as high as one in 4. The rates only get higher by
middle and high school when truancy grows worse.
Research backs up the common sense notion that children will do worse in school if they aren’t
in class to learn. An analysis of national sample of chronically absent kindergarten students (those
missing 10% of school days) revealed lower academic performance when they reach 1st grade. Reading
scores for Latino children were most affected. Among poor children, who lack the resources to make up
lost time, chronic absence in kindergarten translated into lower 5th
grade achievement.
By 6th
grade, chronic absence begins to predict high school dropout rates, a study of Baltimore
students showed. By ninth grade, missing 20% of school can better predict a dropout than eight-grade
test scores, Chicago researchers found. Along with behavior problems and failure of core academic
courses, poor student attendance is a critical early warning sign of a dropout.
Low-income children are disproportionately affected by chronic absence in the early grades.
They are more likely to miss too much school and more likely to fall behind in academics, particularly
reading, which is the focus of instruction in the primary grades. When chronic absence is too high, it can
affect all students, as teachers spend more time reviewing concept. In states where funding is tied to
attendance, chronic absence can cost schools money. In a Colorado study, they found that if just one
truant youth is turned around and he or she completes high school, the government savings pay for the
cost of a truancy reduction program for one year. If we also are able to keep the truant youth from
becoming delinquent, we can save an additional $800,000 in government costs (2002).
Most schools only pay attention to average daily attendance (the percentage of students who
show up each day to school) and unexcused absences (truancy.) Both figures can mask the problem with
chronic absence. For example, a school of 200 students with 95 percent average daily attendance could
still have 60 students missing a month of school over the course of the year. Average figures do not
reveal whether absences are spread evenly or whether they are concentrated, with a few students
experiencing excessive absences. At the same time, truancy figures underestimate the number of days
students are actually missing. Most young children typically don’t miss school without an adult calling
in an excuse. Overly punitive discipline codes that result in suspension for minor offenses, or even for
truancy, can exacerbate the chronic absence problem. (Suspensions are considered excused absences.)
What are schools across the nation doing about it? Chronic absence can be significantly reduced
when schools and communities work together. The most effective efforts:
Use data on chronic absence to identify patterns. The Oakland school district recently
completed an analysis that maps attendance patterns by neighborhood, by ethnicity and by grade.
The district has set goals for improvement and is monitoring the data regularly.
Take comprehensive approaches involving students, families, and community agencies.
Baltimore launched a citywide attendance initiative that makes chronic absence a focus and
addresses transportation, safety and health concerns.
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Examine factors contributing to chronic absence. A Providence school interviewed parents
and found that those who worked overnight shifts were coming home and falling asleep before
bringing their children to school. The school opened an earlier day care program to help those
parents and saw attendance improve.
Pay attention to attendance early, ideally starting in pre-K, with special attention to
transition years: kindergarten, 6th
and 9th
grades. Chicago Public Schools have started
tracking attendance in their preschool programs.
Offer positive supports to promote attendance before resorting to punitive responses or
legal action. A New York State study found court action does little to reduce truancy.
At a National PTA Conference, March 11, 2009, Hedy Chang, Consultant, Annie E. Casey Foundation
presented research findings already presented above as well as the following:
Chronic early absence can reach high levels locally – as high as 25% district wide or half of all
the children in a particular elementary school.
The educational experience of regularly attending children can be adversely affected when
teachers must divert their attention to meet the needs of chronically absent children when they
return to school.
Chronic early absence could be a critical tool for identifying troubled children, families or
educational institutions early on before problems are more difficult to ameliorate.
Chronic absence is easily hidden by typically high elementary school attendance rates.
School data systems may underestimate prevalence of chronic absence because they do not
electronically track absences for individual children.
A high level of chronic absence suggests the existence of systemic issues affecting large numbers of
students and families.
School Related Factors – Does the school:
o Communicate the importance of attendance especially to families who speak
languages other than English?
o Monitor and reach out to families when children miss extended periods of time?
o Engage parents in their children’s education, including drawing upon family assets
and cultural resources?
o Provide a high quality, engaging and safe educational experience?
Family Related Factors – Are the families:
o Aware of the adverse impact of chronic early absence and have they developed
routines that promote consistent school attendance?
o Poor and lack the resources (transportation, food, clothing, social supports, etc.) to
ensure their children regularly attend school?
o Highly mobile?
o Have difficulty addressing and managing illness, especially chronic disease?
25 | P a g e
o Have a history of negative experiences with education and may not feel welcome in
schools?
o Face multiple risks (e.g. living in poverty, teen parenthood, single parenthood, low
maternal education, welfare, unemployment, food insecurity, poor maternal health
and multiple siblings)?
o Dealing with serious problems (e.g. mental illness, homelessness, child or domestic
abuse, incarceration of a parent, etc. that make school attendance difficult because
family life has been disrupted and public agencies and school lack a coordinated
response?
Community Related Factors – Is this an indication that the community
o Does not provide adequate support to help young children and families make a
positive transition into elementary school?
o Is severely distressed and lacks formal or informal supports to promote the positive
development of children including regular school attendance?
o Experiences high levels of violence that adversely affect family functioning and
getting children to school safely?
Dr. Chang presented the following Comprehensive Response that aligns with the national Response to
Intervention (RtI).
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Adapted from:
Comprehensive Response to Attendance By Hedy Chang, Annie E. Casey Foundation
Tier 1: 100% Prevention
Offer incentives for attendance to all children
Encourage families to help each other attend school
Educate parents about the importance of attendance
Engage families of all backgrounds in their children’s education
Offer a high quality education responsive to diverse learning needs
Ensure access to preventative health care, especially as children enter
school
Prepare children for school through quality early care and education
experiences
Tier 2: up to 20% Intervention
Early outreach to families with poor attendance, as
appropriate, case management to address social,
medical economic and academic needs
Tier 3: 5% - 9%
Court Management
Coordinated public agency and,
if needed, legal response for
families in crisis
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Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning Suggested Programs for
PREVENTION – Chronic Absence
Program 1: Truancy Prevention Mediation Program, Dispute Resolution Services of NTx
Ages 4 – 12
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Lack of parental understanding of legal requirements for attendance
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Disconnect between academic success and quality of life
Lack of knowledge of existing resources and support for parents
Lack of chronic absence data may result in missed early warning signs
Disconnect between attendance and school funding
Early poor attendance habits may lead to truancy
Lack of mediation often results in cases reaching the attention of the courts
Summary: During the 2009 school year, Arlington ISD began a pilot program with Dispute Resolution
Services (DRS), the agency that Tarrant County contracts with for mediation services. Part of their
contract with the county includes working with local school districts to offer mediation services. In
2009, five AISD elementary schools, selected because of their lower Average Daily Attendance (ADA)
rates were chosen by AISD administrators to participate in the project. Students with excessive
absences or tardies were referred to DRS. DRS acts as an independent non-biased third party to contact
the parents of the student and set up a meeting with the parent and the school. DRS provides trained
volunteer mediators that work with the school and the parent to find solutions to improve the student’s
attendance. Often simple solutions such as assisting a parent with transportation, an alarm clock or
childcare are the answer. In other cases, impressing upon the family the importance of attendance and
of their legal responsibility to ensure that their child attends school is all that is needed.
Important Definitions per Attendance Works (www.attendanceworks.org):
Average Daily Attendance: The percentage of enrolled students who attend school each day.
Satisfactory Attendance: Missing 5% or less of school in an academic year.
Chronic Absence: Missing 10% or more of school in an academic year for any reason—excused or
unexcused.
Severe Chronic Absence: Missing 20% or more days of school per year –approximately two months of
school.
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Success Data
In the second year of the program, there were 1,719 absences prior to mediation. That number was
reduced to 286 after mediation. In the same year, there were 3,271 tardies before mediation. That
number was reduced to 675 after mediation. Currently, DRS reports that it has more than two hundred
currently trained and active mediators to bring to an expansion of the program. While the first year
showed a 33% reduction in the number of absences, the second year showed an 80% reduction in the
number of absences.
Tracking chronic absence data is essential. AISD chose the five pilot schools based on average daily
attendance. Of the five schools selected for the pilot, two had 96.0% ADA and three had 96.1% ADA.
Of those five, chronic absence percentages were 10%, 9%, 8%, 10%, and 11%. The school with the
highest chronic absence (12%) was missed, and it had 96.2% ADA. There were 6 additional schools
that had higher ADA than the pilot schools yet equal or higher chronic absence that would not be
identified without the chronic absence data. For more information on chronic absence, see the
Attendance Works website: http://www.attendanceworks.org/.
Successful with:
All elementary schools in the pilot program are Title 1.
List needed partners:
District personnel and administration
PEIMS coordinator or other stats keeper
Campus administrators
Students
Parents
Dispute Resolution Services of North Texas (DRS)
Volunteer mediators – Trained and coordinated by DRS
The Parenting Center
Communication process required to succeed:
Clearly communicate the difference between chronic absence, average daily attendance, and
truancy to teachers, school administrators, parents, and the community.
Share data collected between schools in the district.
When a child misses 3 days of school without a proper excuse and/or 10 tardies, the school data
clerk submits a mediation referral to DRS.
DRS will contact the parent(s) informing them of the school referral and attempts to schedules a
mediation date.
The mediator goes to the school to mediate between the parent(s) and a school representative (A
designee of the campus – i.e. attendance officer, teacher, assistant principal)
Through mediation, the parent(s) and school representative share information that helps them to
better understand why the child has not been attending school and what can be done to remedy
the problem(s) that have caused repeated unexcused absences.
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Arlington Police Department provided a community resource guide to DRS for mediators to use
in helping the parent(s) with resources needed to help get their child to school on time (financial
assistance, clean clothes, an alarm clock, etc.)
If DRS staff does not receive a response from a parent, AISD Truancy Officers will be notified.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Run chronic absence data report at the end of each semester to monitor progress and determine
which schools have the greatest need for mediation assistance.
o Steven Harvey, Assistant Superintendent at AISD, was instrumental in gathering the data
from their PEIMS system.
DRS collects the following:
o School name; Intake ID #; Client name; Intake Date; Closure date; Prior absences; Prior
tardies; After absence; After tardies; Reason for Student Attendance Problem; gender;
race.
Cost / Funding:
There is no additional cost. DRS is a contract mediation group funded through the Tarrant County
General Fund. School based mediation services are included in that contract with Tarrant County.
Mediators are trained community volunteers.
It is important to note that attendance rates are closely tied to school funding. Also important to note is
that according to one report: “There is evidence suggesting that missing school negatively relates to
academic achievement.” Gottfried, Michael, The Detrimental Effect of Missing School: Evidence from
Urban Siblings, American Journal of Education, v. 117, no. 2, Feb. 2011, p. 147-182
Program 2: Teacher Home Visits
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Lack of parental understanding of legal requirements for attendance
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Disconnect between academic success and quality of life
Lack of knowledge of existing resources and support for parents
Disconnect between attendance and school funding
Early poor attendance habits may lead to truancy
Summary: Chapel Hill Academy (elementary charter school), initiated Teacher Home Visits prior to
the first day of elementary school. Teachers made pre-first day home visits to approximately 40 students
who had been identified in the prior year as having indications of chronic absences or tardies.
Success Data: On time attendance in the 40 students improved by 75%.
Successful with: Chapel Hill Academy is a Title I elementary school with approximately 70+%
economically disadvantaged students.
List needed partners:
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Teachers
School Administration
School Counselors
Communication process required to succeed:
A “top down” communication on the importance of this strategy will be critical.
Teachers will need to be educated on how to conduct appropriate, strengths-based home visits.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
A target list of elementary students with a prior history of chronic absences and tardies should
serve as the initial population. Following home visits, attendance/tardies can be tracked in the
school database to determine efficacy of the intervention. Those students/families who cannot be
reached for a home visit could serve as a “control group” for the intervention.
Cost / Funding: One staff day
While this may be significant, any minor increase in ADA would more than offset the cost.
Program 3: Attendance Incentives for Parents/Students
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Lack of parental understanding of legal requirements for attendance
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Disconnect between academic success and quality of life
Lack of knowledge of existing resources and support for parents
Disconnect between attendance and school funding
Early poor attendance habits may lead to truancy
Summary: Chapel Hill Academy (elementary charter school) has implemented a wide array of
incentives to promote certain behaviors for parents and children. Specifically for parents, the use of
incentives has been a positive predictor of success. Rewards have included flat screen televisions, Blu-
ray DVD’s, iPads or iPhones, laptop computers, etc. Incentives can be powerful motivating factors in
any person’s life. The use of incentives to promote on-time attendance for students is not new and is
implemented in many schools. For elementary levels, parent incentives can be a stronger factor toward
the on-time attendance for students. While a yearly incentive can be useful, a shorter term incentive
promotion can be more productive. Six (6) week promotions provide an opportunity to encourage a
family to “get back on track” despite earlier problems with attendance in the year. A subsequent lower
value promotion for students is also recommended. These incentives can include free dress days or
lower value items (gift cards, etc.).
Success Data - N/A
Successful with: Title I elementary school, approximately 70+% economically disadvantaged students
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List needed partners:
Principals
Teachers
School Counselors
Donors/Sponsors (if available)
Communication process required to succeed:
Process needs to be widely and clearly communicated with families and students to avoid any
misunderstandings which could prove counterproductive.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
School attendance tracking can be utilized to determine success for any promotions. If desired, some six
week periods may not have an incentive promotion allowing for comparison to other periods with
incentives.
Cost / Funding:
Minimal versus the benefit of increased ADA for the school/district. Costs can be variable based on
available resources.
Program 4: On-Site Therapeutic Family Counseling
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Disconnect between academic success and quality of life
Lack of knowledge of existing resources and support for parents
Issues with trauma, domestic violence, and basic life skills
Poor communication
Summary: For many low-income families, there are a number of barriers that may inhibit their ability to
ensure their children are in school on time. These familial issues may include trauma, domestic
violence, lack of familial communication, basic life skills, etc. Professional counseling has shown to
significantly improve these aspects for families. In addition, students with improved family/home
stability generally improve academically, socially, and behaviorally.
Success Data: Since “control” groups are not feasible with counseling, success data from large scale
research projects must be taken into account. Research studies on counseling efforts have shown
improved results for families and their children. A logical correlation is that these improvements result
in better outcomes for children, including school attendance.
Successful with: While all families in stress can benefit from professional counseling, these services for
low-income families are more difficult to access since they do not have the resources (insurance or
private pay).
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List needed partners:
School administration (budget)
Principals
School counselors (for referrals)
Teachers (for referrals)
Community agency to provide services at reduced rates.
Communication process required to succeed:
It is essential to communicate the purpose of counseling to families. This becomes an important task for
the school counselor or principal.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Attendance and academic improvement data should be easily collected to determine improvement for
the student.
Cost / Funding:
Depending on the number of families and sessions, cost can be significant. Partnering with a local
agency to provide these services at a reduced cost or through Medicaid billing can mitigate the expense.
Program 5: Santa Fe Youth Services Strengthening Families Program – Ages 9 - 16
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to improving Attendance:
Lack of ability to control actions/behaviors (particularly in high risk children)
Lack of ability to adequately manage emotions
History of school failure
Lack of ability to interact in social settings
Unable to appropriately problem-solve
Difficulty communicating
Unable to resist peer pressure or recognize negative and positive influences
Unable to identify reasons to attend school
Limited parent involvement in academic success
Inability to recognize school attendance relates to school success
Family identifies more important needs/problems than school attendance
Victimized at school
Family issues or abuse in the home
Summary: Santa Fe Youth Services has been implementing The Strengthening Families Program (SFP)
for over 10 years. SFP is an evidence-based program where parents and youth attend separate groups for
the first hour, then work together in family sessions in the second hour. All of the sessions include
interactive activities that promote positive relationships and are facilitated by specially trained Santa Fe
Youth Services staff. The groups are held in various locations throughout Tarrant County, including
Arlington, Keller, Crowley and other surrounding municipalities. All parent groups are offered in
English and Spanish.
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School Counselors, Parent Liaisons, community members, Juvenile and Family Courts, CPS, and
parents can contact Santa Fe Youth Services for information and to enroll in the program. Parents are
given a brief overview of the program and the date and time, sent an Informational Packet and an
invitation to attend an Orientation Group.
While participating in the SFP, youth learn how to deal with peer pressure, how to handle angry feelings
and manage stress, how to choose positive friends, and how to appreciate their families/caregivers. The
parents learn what to expect from their teenagers, how to set limits and discipline children in a caring
manner, and how to have a greater understanding of the challenges of their teenager. The family learns
to solve problems together, to communicate and appreciate each other’s views, and how to have fun
together. Incentives are offered each week such as dinner, transportation, childcare for those children
too young to participate, and a bag of groceries.
There are 14 educational classes, held for 14 consecutive weeks. Each week’s session includes the youth
and parent group and the family group. Enrollment is accepted until the third week and make-up groups
are offered to those who are absent. Each family is contacted weekly by phone to ensure they will be
able to attend and follow up on any issues or concerns they may be experiencing.
Success Data:
Since 2001, Santa Fe Youth Services has provided SFP to approximately 4000 Tarrant County families,
with a success rate of 85%. This program was initially awarded funding in 2001 through the Texas
Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. It was again refunded in 2004 and 2008 through the
Department of State Health Services.
Successful with:
SFP was developed to work with a broad range of demographics, including Hispanics (70%), African
Americans (18%), and Caucasian (10%), with the highest demographic being Hispanic.
List needed partners:
School District personnel and administration
Students
Parents
Law enforcement
Area Juvenile Services
Juvenile and Family Courts
Communication process required to succeed:
Referral Process – ensuring that all schools and local partners are familiar with Santa Fe Youth Services
and the Strengthening Families Program.
Staff visits schools, law enforcement agencies, and courts to share information and leave
brochures for dissemination.
Continue to communicate with families once referral is received through the end of the group
cycle.
Identify other services family may need and make referrals; follow up to ensure contact is made.
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Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Student demographic information: grade, age, race, and gender, campus
Completion of 14 groups
Completion of Pre and Post Test
Exit Questionnaire
Cost/ Funding:
The program is currently grant funded through Department of State Health Services and there is no cost
to the youth or family.
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Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning
INTERVENTION - Truancy
On October 15, 2009, The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention posted a Truancy Literature Review prepared by Marth Yeide and Mel Kobrin, Development
Services Group, Inc. Their scope of the problem identified that habitual truancy can be defined as
unexcused absences from school by a minor that exceed the number of such absences allowed under
State law.
What is Truancy in Texas?
Truancy is the absence of a student without a valid excuse from school or class during a regular
school day.
The Texas Education Code, Sections 25.085 (a) and (b), state that a child who is at least six years
of age, or who is younger than six years of age and has previously been enrolled in first grade,
and has not reached the child’s 18th
birthday shall attend school each school day for the entire
period the program of instruction is provided.
If the student fails to attend school without a valid excuse for 10 days or parts of days within a
six month period or for 3 days or parts of days within a four-week period, the parent and student
are subject to prosecution.
How do districts respond to truancy issues?
Students are referred to their respective District Attendance/Truancy Officer who will contact the
student and conference with them and/or their parents. A warning letter regarding the student’s
attendance and stating the consequences of violating truancy laws shall be mailed to the student’s
residence.
Cases will be filed in court, and consequences can result in fines up to $500 for each day the
student remains truant from school. Other consequences are loss of VOE (TEA) forms necessary
for driver’s education, suspension of driver’s license or permit, referral to the juvenile probation
department, and/or a warrant for the arrest of the parent or student may be issued.
The Compulsory School Attendance Policy states that 90% attendance in each class or subject
offered is mandatory for all students. If a student fails to attend 90% of the days of instruction,
credit may be lost, and promotion to the next grade may be in jeopardy.
It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian to call the school by a district designated time
each day a student is absent to explain the absence of the student. Absences not cleared will
remain unexcused.
From the Truancy Literature Review, truancy is on the rise. A 2007 study based on self-report data
from the Monitoring the Future survey, 11 percent of eighth graders and 16 percent of tenth graders
reported recent truancy. Reliable truancy data is difficult to find due to the variance of collection
processes. Since most school districts across the nation collect average daily attendance, significant
truancy rates are masked. Similarly, obscured is the significance of truancy statistics for secondary
schools; since dropouts in upper grades are not enrolled in any school, they are excluded from truancy
calculations (Heilbrunn, 2007; Levy and Henry, 2007). These same investigators also make the point
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that only two thirds of ninth graders will graduate, thus statistical absence is greatly skewed. In large
longitudinal studies in Chicago and Philadelphia documentation of poor attendance is a primary driver
of course failure in the secondary grades, and that course failure is at the root of high dropout rates
(Balfanz it al. 2008). Low achievement, retention/overage for grade, and poor attendance were found to
significantly impact dropout rates at all school levels (Hammond et al. 2007).
Costs of truancy are high. The direct and indirect consequences of truancy for individuals, schools,
communities, and society in the short- and long-term are so serious, and truancy is so prevalent, that the
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention named truancy reduction one of its national
priorities for 2003. Truancy has been clearly identified as one of the early warning signs that youth
potentially are headed for delinquent activity, social isolation, or educational failure. Research has
shown that truancy is related to delinquency, substance use and abuse, high school dropout, suicidal
thoughts and attempts, and early sexual intercourse. The cost: according to the 2000 census while 83
percent of college graduates and 71 percent of high school graduates were employed, high school
dropouts had an employment rate of only 52 percent (Walker, 2007). Dropouts are poorly prepared to
enter the workforce and require greater expenditures for social services and criminal processes than do
graduates (Heilbrunn, 2007). Unemployment rates for dropouts are generally almost 20 percent higher
than for high school graduates. Absenteeism harms more than the individual, school districts are funded
according to their average daily attendance. A program in Fort Worth helped raise average daily
attendance from 93.8 percent in 2002-2003 to 94.9 percent in 2003-2004, this resulted in an additional
$4 million in revenue for the district (Murphy, 2005).
Community crime studies have shown that 60 percent of the juvenile crime occurred on weekdays
between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. (Baker, Sigmon, and Nugent, 2001). In a study by Henry and Huizinga
(2007), they found that the most robust predictors of truancy are school performance and involvement
with delinquent peers, though these two factors appear to behave synergistically so that truancy is
mitigated for those associating with delinquent peers but performing well in school.
Barriers facing truant youth are significant and often multifaceted. Data from OJJDP’s Truancy
Reduction Demonstration Programs showed that of the 634 students participating:
87% qualified for free or reduced price lunch
36% lived with only one adult in the home
20% lived with no working adult in the home
19% had individual education plans
15% had school discipline problems at program intake
13% had juvenile justice involvement
Data from a study by the National Center for Children in Poverty (2008) study show that the most
common risks experienced by U.S. kindergarteners include the following:
19% live with a single mother
18% live below the Federal Poverty Level
14% come from a large family with four or more children at home
12% live with a mother who has not completed high school
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According to Baker, Sigmon, and Nugent (2001), programs that show the most promise in reducing
truancy and other risk factors have several key elements:
Parental involvement
Meaningful sanctions or consequences for truancy
Meaningful incentives for attendance
Ongoing school based truancy reduction programs
Involvement of community resources
School – Based Programs:
Programs can be successful when they aim to identify truancy and absence problems before they
reach a chronic level and before patterns become entrenched and harder to reverse. Three programs that
have been implemented and evaluated for truancy reduction include:
School Attendance Initiative (SAI) is a non-punitive, culturally appropriate approach to help
students maintain regular attendance. The primary intervention strategy consists of outreach to
families of K-8 students, in support of their efforts to improve their children’s attendance. It is a
strengths-based model (Multnomah County, Ore.).
Abolish Chronic Truancy (ACT) targets elementary students. The program places prosecutors in
the schools to work with administrators, teachers, parents or guardians, and students to intervene
at the beginning of the truancy cycle, before the problem is ingrained. ACT uses a series of
graduated interventions to hold students and parent accountable for attendance (Los Angeles
County, CA).
Bigs in School (Big Brothers Big Sisters) is a one-to-one mentoring program that takes place in
the school setting.
Community-Based Programs
Community-based programs recognize that truancy is not an individual or family problem alone, but that
chronic truancy is a community problem that can best be addressed by collaboration among various
systems in the community. From the Truancy Literature Review, the following are just a few example of
programs that have been implemented and evaluated for truancy reduction.
Truancy Assessment and Service Centers (TASC) are one example of a community-based
approach. The legislation establishing the need and authority for TASCs recognizes that the
reduction of truancy and its many causes is the responsibility of multiple agencies. Thus each
TASC is organized as a cooperative, interagency program, drawing on various agencies to
provide an effective use of resources. TASCs mobilize all segments of the community.
New Jersey Juvenile/Family Crisis Intervention Units are authorized to divert matters involving
family-related problems (i.e., incorrigibility, truancy, runaway, and serious family conflict) from
court proceedings. They provide short-term crisis intervention services with the goal of
stabilizing the family situation and/or referring the juvenile and family to available community
agencies. They provide 24-hour on-call service, interviewing the youth and his or her family,
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providing family counseling and crisis stabilization services, and referring the family to
community-based services.
Kern County (CA) Truancy Reduction program emphasizes daily school attendance through a
collaborative effort of parental participation, school involvement, and casework management.
The program stresses collaboration between schools and juvenile probation officers. Components
include assessment, home visits, weekly school contacts, counseling with the student and family,
referrals to community resources, mentoring and evaluation. Students referred to the program are
usually monitored for an entire academic year.
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Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning Suggested Programs for
Truancy Intervention
Program 1: Intervention Attendance Incentive Program (AIP), H-E-B I.S.D. Truancy Department –
Ages 9 - 12
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Lack of identifiable incentive for student to attend school
Lack of parental involvement in regards to academic success
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Parent and student not making attendance a top priority
Inability of parent to see importance of attendance for younger children
Younger students being at the mercy of parent to provide transportation
Summary: The Attendance Incentive Program (AIP) was implemented at the beginning of the school
year 2010-2011 as a pilot program to address chronic attendance issues in a positive approach as
opposed to a punitive approach. The initial target population for the pilot program was 4th
, 5th
, and 6th
graders (elementary campuses) who had at least 5 “incidents” the previous 6-week period (an incident
being defined as an unexcused absence or a tardy to school).
At the beginning of each 6-week period, the campus administrator identifies 20 – 40 students
meeting target criteria. An attendance / truancy officer visits the student at school and explains the
details of the AIP, as well as the incentive for meeting the requirements. The parent is also contacted and
made aware of the AIP and the participation requirements. The student and parent are informed that the
student cannot have an unexcused absence or tardy during the 6-week period in order to be eligible to
participate. If the student does not meet those requirements, then he/she will not be eligible to
participate.
The incentives range from a field trip to tour Cowboys Stadium; attending a Dallas Mavericks
game; attending a Texas Rangers game; attending a party at IT’Z Pizza and Games; or Games 2 U party
at the campus. The activities are provided at no cost to the parent or student. The bus transportation is
provided by the District and is funded by the campuses that have students participating in that particular
AIP. The remainder of the cost is covered by a non-profit organization in the community. Chaperones
for the students include the truancy department staff as well as volunteers from the campuses and the
community.
Success Data:
There have been ten (10) 6-week AIP events since the start of the AIP pilot program to date.
Success is calculated by the number of students who meet the attendance requirements and are eligible
to participate in the field trip reward and referred to as “Initial Success rate”. The attendance record for
those students who are eligible to participate in the field trip are monitored for the following 6-week
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period and success is calculated based on the number of students who continued to have good attendance
even though there was no incentive and referred to as “Follow-Up Success rate”.
Total number of students targeted for the AIP to date is 280
Average Initial Success rate is 56%
Average Follow Up Success rate is 80%
Approximate 126 of the 280 students with attendance issues had good attendance for at least 12
weeks following initial contact with the AIP
Almost half of the students targeted were able to improve their attendance by being offered an
incentive rather than threatened with a consequence. If the program could be expanded to encompass
more grade levels and include more students, the potential to have a meaningful impact on the families
and the school district’s attendance rate would be broadened. For example, if 1000 students were able to
participate in the AIP each year, we could reasonably expect approximately 488 of them to improve
their attendance without having to be filed on in court.
Successful with:
The AIP would work for most every student population as long as the incentive is age-appropriate.
List needed partners:
District personnel and administration
Campus administrators
Students
Parents
Business owners / managers in the community (for funding & to provide the incentives)
Non-profit organizations (for the H-E-B I.S.D. Truancy Department AIP it is Loaves and Fishes)
Church leaders
Communication process required to succeed:
Email between campus administrators, department or organization managing the AIP
One-on-one contact with the student
Telephone or email contact with the parent
Written agreement with community partner(s)
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Student demographic info: grade, age, race, and gender
Student name and ID # and campus
Student attendance history
Current attendance report
Attendance records for remainder of school year to monitor success rate
Cost / Funding: Each campus provides funding for the cost of bus transportation for the field trip. The
cost for the event ranges from $8 - $19 per student depending on the activity. A non-profit covers the
cost for our students. However, if a school district and/or the campuses are willing to cover more of the
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costs and/or if more community partners are willing to cover more of the costs, then the program can
target more students and make a bigger impact on the attendance rate.
Program 2: Williamson County Neighborhood Conference Committee– Ages 13 - 15
Issues, Risks and Barriers for Youth Related to Improving Attendance:
Students inability to see how attending school / graduating are related to their life goals
Lack of parental involvement (in schools and in their own children’s education)
Lack of collaboration among schools, community organizations, courts, etc.
Delay in response to truancy
Lack of a solution-based plan focused on the root of the truancy problem
Sole means of transportation (public) may run late
Deeper problem of lack of stability (renting apartments and lack of mobility, e.g., the school is
far and there’s limited transportation options)
Must take siblings to separate school with similar start time
Medical appointments
Mental health issues
Unaddressed special education needs or chronic illness
Bullying
Family problems at home
Bored at school,
Feels unsafe at school
No connection with school;
Parents: oversleeping; mental health issues; not understanding importance of regular school
attendance
Students have to work, sometimes multiple jobs, to help their families
Summary: The Neighborhood Conference Committee (NCC) of Williamson County consists of local
citizens in the community providing services to students who are first-time truant offenders. The student
and his/her family are referred to NCC by the local school district. The family meets with a panel of
volunteers to establish the root of the truancy problem. Together the student, family, and the NCC panel
develop a positive action plan. The action plan outlines the requirements that the student must
successfully complete without having to go through a formal court hearing. The action plan requires the
student to develop a graduation plan, a career plan, and to participate in appropriate activities such as
community service, mentoring, and/or expressing an apology to a victim. The action plan may also
include referrals for support services such as parent/child mediations and parent groups. NCC also
provides an avenue for expressing the community’s concern to the student to help the student generate a
sense of responsibility and opportunities for personal growth and development In terms of financing,
two Justices of the Peace charge a $5 fee on all court cases (there is a provision in TX law that permits
such a fee) to help fund the NCC.
Also, the school districts pay on-site coordinators for the committee. The NCC also landed a
$50,000 grant to pay for a case manager who complements the work of the coordinator. The case
manager handles the day-to-day details, while the coordinator works on networking and connecting with
volunteers.
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Success data:
This current school year is the first time they have collected data, and they just finished
collecting it at the end of March 2012.
A total of 235 kids were referred to NCC since August 2011. Of these 235: only 4 have had
subsequent failure to attend infractions; an additional 4 have had other, non-school related
infractions
Anecdotal: Richard Kolek, the principal of Taylor Middle School, said the school has referred 43
students to the program since it began in Taylor last year. “The kids that were chronic truancy
problems are not so anymore, and our attendance is up this year,” Kolek said.
Gordon Perez, a Round Rock school district administrator, said that the NCC has helped parents
become more involved in schools; especially since the NCC has evening hours and the parents
are able to come in and have a conversation about their children.
Successful with:
124 male, 111 female
137 Hispanic, 68 white, 20 black
115 were 13-15 years old
141 came from single-parent households
they will be tracking free and reduced lunch percentages next year and will have that data in
April 2013
List needed partners:
School Districts-This is the essential partner
Justices of the Peace
Juvenile Probation
School Administrators
Teachers
Parents
Community
Non-Profit Organizations (for NCC, it’s LifeSteps)
Law Enforcement
Potential Partners to Assist in the Implementation:
All of these individuals have offered their assistance in setting up an NCC in Tarrant County:
Efrain Davila, Executive Director of LifeSteps and one of NCC’s founders
Scott Matthew, Executive Director, Williamson County Juvenile Services
Michelle Miner, NCC County Coordinator, Williamson County Juvenile Services Assistant
Chief Matt Smith
Communication process required to succeed:
Need to establish communication links among key groups: parents, students, teachers, school
districts, courts, community, community organizations
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
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Demographic data: age, race, gender, single parent, free and reduced lunch, disability / special
education status
Total number of referrals
Recidivism data
Program 3: Lena Pope’s Second Opportunity for Success – Ages 11- 18
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to improving Attendance:
Lack of identifiable incentive for student to attend school
Lack of parental involvement in regards to academic success
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Parent and student not making attendance a top priority
Inability of parent to see importance of attendance for younger children
Transportation issues
Lack of collaboration among schools, community organizations, courts, etc.
Delay in response to truancy
Lack of a solution-based plan focused on the root of the truancy problem
Bullying, boredom, feels unsafe at school
Family relationship problems at home
Summary: Lena Pope Home’s Second Opportunity for Success (SOS) program – The SOS program is
a strengths-based program focused on building relationships with both youth and parents. Referrals
have come from Ft. Worth Police Department and surrounding police departments as well as the Ft.
Worth ISD truancy court. Families have also self-referred.
The SOS program is a diversionary program that was originally developed in 1999 through
collaboration with Lena Pope Home (LPH) and other community members including Tarrant County
Juvenile Services as an alternative to incarceration for a first offense.This program gives youth an
oppportunity for a second chance. It has evolved over the years and been adapted to provide services
for different populations. The program utilizes a strengths-based approach to personal responsibility.
The curriculum is compiled of evidence-based practices and has been developed through research on a
variety of topics addressing issues leading to delinquent behavior. Topic areas include school
attendance, substance abuse, peer pressure, choices, decision making, family relationships substance
abuse, etc. This program has been shown to be successful with a first time truancy youth and chronic
truancy.
A referral is made to the SOS program by the referring agent. Referring agents could be: direct
parent referral, school counselors, administrative personnel, truancy officers, J. P. courts, etc. The
family is then contacted by a representative form the program in an effort to engage the family. Once
an intake date is set, the family participates in an initial assessment. This is an opportunity to determine
factors contributing to the reason for the referral.
This program is mobile. It has been provided in Arlington, Hurst, Euless, and is currently offered
in one southwest Ft. Worth location and the city of Azle.
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There are seven (7) psycho-educational classes. Each week’s session is all-inclusive so a family can
start at any time. They will need to complete all seven classes before graduating to the follow up
component of the program. The follow up component of the program lasts a minimum of 90 days. This
includes school visits, phone contact, follow up parent meetings if requested, and case management.
The target age group is as young as 11 and up to age 18.
Success Data:
Lena Pope Home has been providing SOS for over 12 years. Over 3,000 youth have been served with
an average 94% success rate. Recidivism rates are determined based on census provided to referral
source (school or juvenile services department). Youth are expected to remain in school throughout this
program and afterwards.
Successful with:
The SOS program has served a broad demographic profile. SOS has served African American,
Caucasian and Hispanic at similar percentages which exceed average numbers for minority youths
receiving services. The SOS program is flexible enough to work for any student population.
List needed partners:
School District personnel and administration
Campus administrators
Students
Parents
Law enforcement
Area Juvenile Services
Courts
Communication process required to succeed:
Strong Marketing Plan – it is important to gather all entities who will make referrals to this
program and provide a training that will detail the elements required to achieve success
Crucial to contact parents early, school personnel intervene early, be proactive vs. reactive
Motivational engagement techniques once referral is received
Intake assessment with the family identifying protective factors and risk factors
Both parent(s) and youth required to participate – LPH feels strongly parental participation is
critical to the successful outcome for the student.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Student demographic information: grade, age, race, and gender, campus
Completion of 7 groups
Completion of 90 day follow up period without a new offense
Student attendance history
Current attendance report
Attendance records for follow up period to monitor success rate
Families will have an open door to continue services, access other services and programs as needed,
return to LPH in the future if new or additional needs arise.
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Cost/ Funding:
LPH can provide this program for approximately $1,200 per youth. This provides an intake assessment,
pre- and post tests, seven weeks of psycho-educational groups utilizing evidence-based practices for
both parents and youth (bilingual parent group if needed), a minimum of three follow up visits, and
follow up with the school. LPH provides all the case management involved including graduation plan, or
alternative if the number of absences is excessive and youth will not pass, referrals are made to pro-
social activities, and other resource referrals as needed. Average length of service is approximately 5
months.
At the end of the groups and 90 day follow up period, if the youth has remained in school and
not committed a new offense, the referring entity will be notified of successful completion and case will
be closed. LPH is always available for additional follow if needed.
Program 4: AimTruancy Solutions – Ages 11 - 18
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to improving Attendance:
Lack of self-confidence and belief that they can succeed in school
Lack of parental involvement in regards to academic success
Lack of positive role model/mentor/coach
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Lack of collaboration among schools, community organizations, courts, etc.
Delay in response to truancy
Lack of a solution-based plan focused on the root of the truancy problem
Bullying, boredom, feels unsafe at school
Lack of skills/knowledge/resources for pregnant/parenting teens
Transportation issues
Pressure from families to get a job to help support the family
Family relationship problems at home
Summary: Solutions (Aim) is an early identification and intervention program for chronic truants.
Specifically, Aim is a year-long, innovative truancy reduction program that not only identifies at-risk
students, but also gets them back into the classroom, on track to graduate, and out of the juvenile
courts. Aim partners with schools, law enforcement, juvenile justice, community based
organizations, and other agencies that recognize the link between truancy reduction and student
success.
Aim was developed in 2005 by Paul Pottinger, PhD, a clinical psychologist (former Executive
Director of Dallas Challenge) and Shelton Stogner, head of the Dallas County Truancy Enforcement
Center at the request of the Dallas County Commissioners Court. Over the past seven years, Dallas-
based Aim has grown throughout Texas, California, Louisiana, and Kentucky successfully partnering
with hundreds of schools and thousands of students as part of various truancy reduction and dropout
prevention initiatives.
AimTruancy Solutions is a proven truancy reduction program by which students build success through
two key functions: mentoring and monitoring.
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Mentoring: intense, bilingual, one-on-one mentoring with carefully chosen, educated and
trained mentors, provides the positive support and guidance that has proven to help truant youth
change their thinking, behaviors, and lives.
Monitoring: State-of-the-art handheld GPS technology starts truants on the path to
accountability, allows them to opt-out of bad behavior, and allows for immediate intervention
when necessary.
Success Data:
AimTruancy’s data-driven intensive program that empowers students to improve their attendance,
grades and behavior. It all starts with attenandance. On average, Aim improves student attendance by
25 days over a school year.
Attendance increase from 79% to 93%
75% of students increase grades in two or more classes
58% decrease in number of school period tardies
20% decrease in suspensions
Successful with :
AimTruancy Solutions works with chronic truants from 6th
to 12th
grade. Our program continues to
prove successful across all student population regardless of age, race or gender.
List needed partners:
School District personnel and administration
Campus administrators
Teachers
Students
Parents
Area Juvenile Services
Courts
Community Outreach
Communication process required to succeed:
Orientation and overview of program to key external stakeholders in student’s life (i.e. school
staff, administration, teachers, etc)
Intake assessment with student and parent/guardian identifying causal issues
Daily communication with student
Ongoing communication with parent/guardian
Ongoing communication with school staff and administration
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Student demographic information: grade, age, race, and gender, campus
Student attendance history
Daily current attendance report
Attendance records for follow up period to monitor success rate
Grades and course credits
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Behavioral information such as “In School” and “Out of School” suspensions
Cost/ Funding:
AimTruancy Solutions provides its yearlong program at a cost of $800 per student. This cost covers all
aspects of the program including but not limited to: individualized mentoring from hand selected,
trained mentors, use of handheld gps/cell phone, utilization of Aim’s proprietary case management
software, customized reporting, morning wake up calls/txts, and real time student updates.
Program 5: Parenting with Love and Limits, Lena Pope Home – Ages 10 - 18
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Lack of identifiable incentive for student to attend school
Lack of parental involvement in regards to academic success
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Parent and student not making attendance a top priority
Inability of parent to see importance of attendance for younger children
Transportation issues
Lack of collaboration among schools, community organizations, courts, etc.
Delay in response to truancy
Lack of a solution-based plan focused on the root of the truancy problem
Bullying, boredom, feels unsafe at school
Family relationship problems at home
Summary: Lena Pope Home’s Parenting with Love and Limits is a recognized, evidence-based
program developed by Dr. Scott Sells. The model is a blending of structural and strategic family
therapy and is manualized. Consultation is provided on a regular basis by the developer of the model to
ensure adherence to the model. Parents and youth meet together in the first hour then separate in the
second hour to address the topic presented more specifically. There are six groups. Once a group
begins, it is considered closed. New families can not be added.
The family therapist that provides the groups for the adults will continue to provide “coaching”,
i.e. family therapy for at least 3 sessions to assist the family in practicing what they have learned. This
program was originally funded by a grant throught the State of Texas Prevention and Early
Intervention Department. The funding ended two years ago. Referrals have been accepted from school
districts, police departments, the FWISD Truancy Intervention project and self referral.
Parenting with Love and Limits®(PLL) is the first evidence-based program of its kind to combine a 6-
week parent education and group therapy program with 4 or more individual “coaching” (family
therapy) sessions for adolescents and their parents. PLL is designed for youth between 10 and 18. The
Parenting with Love and Limits is a program developed to work with pre-adjudicated youth.
Success Data:
LPH has been providing PLL for the past 6 years. Recidivism rates are determined based on
census provided to referral source (school or juvenile services departments). PLL also counts attending
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5 out of 6 groups and at least attending 3 coaching session as success. Youths are expected to remain in
school throughout this program.
Successful with:
The PLL program has served a broad demographic profile. PLL has served African American,
Caucasian and Hispanic at similar percentages which exceed average numbers for minority youth
receiving services. The PLL program is flexible enough to work for any student population.
List needed partners:
School District personnel and administration
Campus administrators
Students
Parents
Law enforcement
Area Juvenile Services
Courts
Communication process required to succeed:
Strong Marketing Plan – it is important to gather all entities who will make referrals to this
program and provide a training that will detail the elements required to achieve success. LPH
will contact, set up and provide training on a stream-lined referral process.
Crucial to contact parents early, school personnel intervene early, be proactive vs. reactive.
Motivational engagement techniques once referral is received
Intake assessment with the family identifying protective factors and risk factors
Both parent(s) and youth required to participate – LPH feels strongly parental participaton is
critical to the successful outcome for the student.
This is a closed group which require everyone buying into the program so there is support from
the referring agent to ensure family follows through and agency to engage the family.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Student demographic information
Completion of 5 group sessions
3 – 5 coaching sessions with masters level family therapist
Student attendance history
Current attendance report
Attendance records for follow up period to monitor success rate
Families will have an open door to continue services, access other services and programs as needed,
return to LPH in the future if new or additional needs arise.
Cost/Funding:
Parenting with Love and Limits is an evidence-based program that has to be purchased from the
developer. Curriculum must be purchased as well as costs associated with consultation and on-going
training. The developer of the model must be assured that agencies utilizing the model are adhering to
the fidelity of the model. Depending on the number of youth participating in the program, licensing fees
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are a minimum of $10,000 per year up to $30,000 per year. Curriculum costs are $54 per family. There
are additional training fees for staff. Consultation is included in the licensing fee. Cost includes 2 staff
who provide the 5 groups one hour together, one hour separate groups. Then the follow up is provided
by the therapist.
Program 6: Santa Fe Youth Services – Reconnecting Youth Program – Grades 9 – 12
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
• Lack of ability to control actions/behaviors (particularly in high risk children)
• Lack of ability to adequately manage emotions
• History of school failure
• Lack of ability to interact in social settings
• Unable to appropriately problem-solve
• Difficulty communicating
• Unable to resist peer pressure or recognize negative and positive influences
• Unable to identify reasons to attend school
• Limited parent involvement in academic success
• Inability to recognize school attendance relates to school success
• Family identifies more important needs/problems than school attendance
• Victimized at school
• Family issues or abuse in the home
Summary: Reconnecting Youth Program (RY) is a intervention program for reducing drop-out rates,
drug abuse, and increase students’ mood management. The evidence-bassed program has been
recognized by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institute on Drug
Abuse as a model program to help students learn, practice, and apply decision-making skills, personal
control strategies, and interpersonal communication techniques.
The RY Program incorporates social support and life skills training into a daily, semester-long
class using a 52-lesson daily curriculum. The class meets daily for a full semester as part of the regular
school curriculum and is taken as an elective credit. The program is an approved Texas Education
Agency (TEA) Innovative Course.
Students who successfully complete RY receive .5 state elective credit. RY classes are facilitated
by a specially trained Santa Fe Youth Services staff member who excels in working with high school
youth. RY has proven to be a life-changing program, providing high school students the opportunity
to take charge of their own destiny, and set themselves on a pth towards indipendence and success. The
key features integrated into the daily RY class are group support and caring to enhance feeling of
acceptance and belonging; life skills training to enhance protective factors by devloping problem
solving skills and learning to manage mod to help with peers and family members; monitoring of
program goals to help establish and maintain personal control; and, school bonding/social activities to
foster healthy choices in friends and activities.
Success Data:
Santa Fe Youth Services has been providing RY to the Tarrant County JJAEP since 2001. Since 2004,
those schools increased to other Tarrant County high schools, and Keller ISD AEP. Since 2001, RY
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has been offered to over 4000 area high school students. Upon entering the program, youth complete a
survey, then again mid-semester, and a final one at the end of the semester to determine improvements.
Additionally, attendance is taken daily to assess amount of increase/decrease. Students participate, take
tests weekly to earn a weekly grade, which counts toward the semester grade and .5 credit. Overall this
program has been implemented with over a 90% success rate.
Successful with:
The RY program was developed to serve a broad demographic profile. Of the 4240 students served,
27% are African American, 48% are Hispanic, 21% White.
List needed partners
School District personnel and administration
Students
Parents
Communication process required to succeed:
Referral Process – ensuring that all schools and local partners are familiar with Santa Fe Youth
Services and the Reconnecting Youth Program. Staff visits schools, to share information and
leave brochures for dissemination.
Once referrals are made into program, youth and families attend an orientation to the program
and completed required paperwork.
Continue to communicate with school administration throughout the semester
Offer motivational incentives for class participation
Identify other services youth or family may need and make referrals; follow up to ensure contact
is made.
Provides motivational engagement techniques following referral
Identifies protective factors and risk factors during family intake assessment
Data to collect and measure for evaluation
Student demographic information
Daily Attendance Log
Completion of semester to determine increase in school attendance
Completion of initial survey to determine grades and drug use
Completion of mid-semester survey on grade improvement and drug use
Completion of final survey on grade improvement and drug use
Exit Questionnaire
Cost/ Funding:
The program is currently grant funded through Department of State Health Services and there is no cost
to the youth or family.
Program 7: Success Lasts a Lifetime with Job Corps – Age 16 and older
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth: Related to Improving Attendance:
Lack of identifiable incentive for student to attend school
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Lack of parental involvement in regards to academic success
Family relationship problems at home
Disconnect between school attendance and academic success
Inability of parent to see importance of attendance for younger children
Transportation issues
Repeated response to truancy
Lack of a solution-based plan focused on the root of the truancy problem
Summary: Job Corps is a free education and training program that helps young people learn a career,
earn a high school diploma or GED, and find and keep a good job. For eligible young people at least
16 years of age that qualify as low income, Job Corps provides the all-around skills needed to succeed
in a career and in life.
Job Corps is the nation's largest career technical training and education program for young people at
least 16 years of age that qualify as low income. A voluntary program administered by the U.S.
Department of Labor, Job Corps provides eligible young men and women with an opportunity to gain
the experience they need to begin a career or advance to higher education. Job Corps has 125 centers
nationwide, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Job Corps offers hands-on training in
more than 100 career technical area including: automotive and machine repair, construction, finance
and business services, health care, hospitality, information technology, manufacturing, renewable
resources, and many more. All training programs are aligned with industry certifications and are
designed to meet the requirements of today's careers. Job Corps also offers the opportunity to earn a
high school diploma or a GED for those youth who don't have either. For youth who already have a
high school diploma, Job Corps can help them prepare for college through partnerships with local
colleges. Youth must live on campus.
Resources are also available for English Language Learners. Courses in independent living,
employability skills, and social skills are offered to all Job Corps students in order to help them make
the transition into the workplace.
The program includes:
Career Preparation Period (CPP)
Career Development Period (CDP)
Career Transition Period (CTP)
Cost / Funding - Free
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MANAGEMENT -
Suspension, Expulsion, Dropping-Out and Delinquency
Truancy has been clearly identified as one of the early warning signs that youth are headed for
potential delinquent activity. Policies and procedures can create barriers to addressing absenteeism and
truancy. For instance, suspension as a punishment for truancy ends up “pushing out” students. One study
found that in Colorado, 70% of the student suspended were chronically truant in the six months prior to
the suspension; while 80% of dropouts were chronically truant the year before. This suspension model
fails to address the underlying causes of truancy and can exacerbate the disengagement from school on
the part of the youth. Certain procedures allow the problem to go unaddressed, such as automated phone
calls that can be ignored or erased by students at home (Gonzales, Richards, and Seeley, 2002). Policies
that tie grading or participation in athletics to attendance can similarly be counterproductive.
Top Ten Reasons Why Teens Drop out of School
Statistical findings suggest that 1 in every 5 students will drop out of high school between the
10th
- 12th
grade for one reason or another. Factoring in all the potential reasons for this extremely high
ratio of drop outs verses graduates is quite complicated as researchers explain. For this reason we have
narrowed down the top ten reasons that teens leave high school before graduation.
Statistically 55% of the nation's students between the ages of 15 and 19 will successfully
complete high school and receive a high school diploma. Another 15% will receive their GED or high
school equivalency before the age of 24, which in total accounts for 70% of students that will graduate
annually. The remaining 30% of high school students will drop out of school before reaching the 12th
grade.
According to the US Department of Education, there are ten significant markers of risk or reasons
teens drop out of high school before graduating. USDOE discovered as the most common reasons teens
drop out of high school.
1. Lack of Education Support
Studies conducted on 5,000 high school drop outs revealed 75% dropped out of high school
because they lack sufficient parental support and educational encouragement.
2. Outside Influences
Friend and/or peer pressure from other high school drop outs, family or other outside
relationships can impact a teen to drop out of school. This also encompasses teens who opt to
drop out high school to join a gang or to be accepted in other teen groups and street
communities.
3. Special Needs
There are a number of teens dropping out high school because they require specific attention to a
certain need such as ADHD or dyslexia. This is predominately among densely population public
high schools where the overcrowded classrooms fail to recognize the special needs of a specific
student.
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4. Financial Problems
Often the family is in a very poor financial situation and in order to help the family financially is
another reason why teen drop out of school. Teens in this case are forced to obtain employment
to financially help the family and in some cases the financial strain can be due to an unplanned
pregnancy and/or parental disabilities.
5. Lack of Interest
One of the biggest reasons a teen will drop out of high school is because they simply lack interest
in gaining an education. Out of 10,000 public high school drop outs, 7,000 of them confessed to
their lack in interest to complete high school. Most often this is due to the generic course
curriculums offed t public high school students, whereby a number of students simply become
bored.
6. Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Drugs and alcohol abuse is within the top 3 reasons students fail to complete their high school
education. It goes without saying, that a teen on drugs will rarely complete high school.
7. Depression and Physical Illnesses
Depression and illnesses can be the result of an eating disorder, heredity, family or financial
situation that will contribute to the teen’s lack of interest in school or class subjects and is
common reason why teens drop out of school.
8. Physical Abuse
Teens that are victims of domestic violence such as physical, verbal and sexual abuse tend to
drop out of high school before obtaining their high school diploma. In most cases a number of
teens experiencing abuse will run away from home, thus causing them to drop out.
9. Teen Pregnancy
In the past, teen pregnancy accounted for 15% of the high school dropout rate among teens
between the ages of 15 - 18. However, these numbers have sharply declined to about 4% on the
average. A number of public schools have opted to reform the school to cater to pregnant teens.
Some states have high schools specifically for pregnant teens and teen mothers to ensure they
complete high school in an environment that does not judge them or discount the impact or
significance of their circumstance.
10. Alternative Lifestyles
This common reason teens drop out of high school is due to their perception of an alternative
lifestyle in which education does not play an important role. A teen who is introduced to drug
dealing and prostitution may view high school as a waste of time because they don't need an
education to sell drugs or their bodies for that matter.
The bottom line for parents to help reduce the number of teen high school drop outs across the
nation is to equip themselves and their teens with knowledge and alternative methods, such as going to a
continuation or alternative school to receive their high school diploma and/or get their GED. It's simply
not enough to tell your teen the importance of an education, but to also guide them into the right
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direction. Most important is maintaining communication so that you can discover your teen's risk of
dropping out far enough in advance to really make a difference in the outcome
Texas School Discipline and Delinquency Prevention
Marc Levin, Director, Center for Effective Justice, presented a paper, Legislators’ Guide to the
Issues, 2012. In this guide, Levin points to the issues that tens of thousands of Texas students as young
as 10 are receiving tickets for Class C misdemeanors in school, most commonly for disrupting class.
Ticketed youngsters must appear with a parent in municipal or justice of the peace court, where they
face fines of up to $500. If they do not appear or do not pay, the case is typically referred to juvenile
probation and, if the matter is not cleared up by the time a youth turns 17, an arrest warrant is issued.
Some 7,000 Texas youths are in Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Programs (JJAEPs),
which are non-residential educational programs overseen by counties for students who have been
expelled, committed certain criminal offenses, or engaged in serious and persistent misbehavior while at
alternative schools called Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs (DAEPs).
Court-Based and Court Diversion Programs
From the Truancy Literature Review, Court-based programs leverage the power of the court in
order to coordinate and oversee the delivery of services that re-identified for the truant youth, and often
for the family as well. Programs can differ in how long they run, the number of times the youth / family
appears before the judge, the role of a social worker or case manager, the representatives included, and
the types of services overseen by the court. Many systems have established diversion program that offer
services after a petition had been received but before a youth is adjudicated. These programs have
various levels of connection to the court, some even being labeled “truancy courts.”
One example of the court-based program is referred to as the Byer Truancy Reduction Program
uses family courts as the means to provide a broad array of services to families. The Family Court judge
and a uniformed bailiff convene “Truancy Court” weekly in the school building, where there is also
regular contact among the court, child, parents, school officials, and services providers. Locating the
court process in the school fosters better communication. Improves needs assessment and understanding
of issues by all involved parties, and increases coordination and integration of services. Services are
provided by a team composed of a judge, school/court liaison, counselor or other involved school
employee, case manager (social worker), treatment provider or providers, and any other court, social
service, or school personnel invested in a particular child or family.
Some programs are connected to the court, but are designed primarily to divert youth from court
before adjudication. These are voluntary programs that families and students may choose to participate
in before a student’s absence from school becomes so severe that the school must refer the case to
family court and/or the Division of Family Services. The truancy court team consists of volunteer judges
and attorneys who serve as truancy court judges, school social workers and/or guidance counselors who
serve as truancy court family advocates and a deputy juvenile officer from the family court. The goals of
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this type program are to increase attendance, improve academic achievement, build character, and curb
delinquent behavior.
A Michigan Status Offense Diversion program provides effective non-court intervention for
status offenders to resolve presenting problems and prevent delinquent behavior. In response to a
petition, the court caseworker will provide supervision for juvenile status offenders and services for the
family for a limited duration (typically 16 weeks). Diversion is a voluntary contract between the
juvenile, his or her parent or legal guardian, and the without authorization of the petition. Conditions of
diversion focus on regular school attendance, parents’ attendance and participation in educational
planning or progress meetings, and referrals to community-based or court-sponsored treatment
programs.
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Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Truancy Planning Committee Suggested Programs
for Management
Problem Solving Model
Summary: Committee members had backgrounds with courts, juvenile probation & juvenile justice and
law enforcement. Most meetings coincided with the larger committee meetings but we did have one
stand-alone meeting during the initial phase of the planning process. The Criminal Justice system needs
to effectively address both the social and criminal factors contributing to chronic absence and truancy
from school utilizing a problem-solving model that works in conjunction with a multitude of resources
throughout the community.
Through multiple discussions, the overwhelming theme was the desire to find a more effective way of
“working” truancy cases that has reached the level of the court system. County Commissioners can
appoint a judge, but currently, truancy cases are referred to the Justice of the Peace court or municipal
courts in the school’s dedicated county precinct and are prosecuted under the Texas Education Code
Sec. 25.094 Failure to Attend School, a class C Misdemeanor. In the State of Texas, a class C
Misdemeanor is punishable by a fine only, not to exceed $500. This level of offense and the size of
Tarrant County require that truancy related cases are filed in either a Justice or Municipal Court or a
Constitutional County Court. Tarrant County currently has no provisions for truancy cases to be heard in
a Constitutional County Court.
Issues, Risks, and Barriers for Youth:
1. Students that are prosecuted criminally have monetary punishments assessed to them.
a. Many times, monetary fines cannot be paid because of financial hardships. Texas law allows
for a Judge to decrease the fine amount to account for a financial hardship. This action takes
away the disciplinary consequence for failing to attend school.
b. Juveniles under the age of 17 cannot be taken into custody for failure to pay a monetary
fine.
Social Problems
Human Problems
= Legal
Problems
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c. Texas law mandates that a criminal case to be filed after a student misses all or part of 10
days within a six month period. However, because of varying processes put in place by each
school district, many truancy cases are not being filed until a student has missed
substantially more than 10 days. This places the student in a situation where they are so far
behind in their studies; they see it as too difficult to catch up.
2. It is a well-known fact that truancy and chronic absence from school often stem from social
issues and not necessarily just a student’s desire to skip school. Court staff and Judges don’t
have access to information that would assist in understanding the root causes of a student’s
chronic absence.
3. Often, there is no standard communication pipeline between law enforcement agencies and
school districts to share information on students.
4. Municipal and Justice courts each have a vast array of types of cases they must hear which
doesn’t allow for a Judge to be able to focus on the most effective solutions or design an
individualized plan to re-engage students. Oftentimes the “cookie-cutter” approach is used when
assessing punishments.
Summary: During the planning process, the subcommittee quickly identified the fact that the dedicated
court was the key factor in an effective county-wide plan to address this issue and recommend that the
county make the creation of this court a priority. A “snap-shot” of what the court should look like was
developed.
6. The dedicated court should be under the authority of the Constitutional County Court.
7. The court should work closely with social service providers identified and utilized through the
intervention phase.
8. The court should be implemented through a partnership with dedicated school district(s).
Court
Schools
Police
Social Services
Families
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9. The court should initially place a focus on cases being filed within a particular High School
network or within a particular county precinct. This will allow for a smooth transition and data
collection of effectiveness.
10. The court should be comprised of the following key components:
Judge
To oversee the management process for absentee cases utilizing social
services through arrangements with the prosecutor and hear cases that
are ultimately being tried as criminal actions.
Prosecutor
A prosecutor that specializes in working with schools and law
enforcement officials to determine underlying causes of chronic
absences and differentiate between criminal behavior and social
deficiencies.
Basic Court Staff
(Judge, Bailiff, Court
Reporter,
Coordinator)
To conduct the daily operations of the court.
Program Manager* To coordinate and oversee the various social services and to work with
directly with the prosecutor and families throughout the process.
Central Information
Sharing System*
To provide a centralized location for an electronic case file in order to
efficiently and accurately track families and their progress.
Committed School
District*
A district that is willing to actively contribute resources to work with
the court, law enforcement and social services to make the program
work.
Committed Local
Police Department
A department that is willing to contribute resources and train officers in
providing appropriate information to the school district, social services
and the court about at-risk families and chronic offenders.
Committed
Constable’s Office
A Constable that is willing to work with the court and Program
Manager to assist in serving court papers in a timely manner and
assisting with home visits as necessary.
Structured Intake
Process
To provide a means of evaluating the family’s needs quickly and
efficiently and identify resources that have been provided or offered
leading up to the court referral.
Interpreter An independent language interpreter to have the ability to
communicate with family members in their spoken language.
Transportation*
To address areas of the county where public transportation is scarce or
non-existent and ultimately serves as a road block (or excuse) to court
attendance.
Assessment*
A way to measure the effectiveness of the services provided, monitor
school attendance once services are complete and provide continual
support for the family to prevent recidivism. Social service providers
support partners. * Denotes what is seen as a crucial “key to success” for the program.
List needed partners:
School District personnel and administration
Campus administrators
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Teachers
Students
Parents
Area Juvenile Social Service Providers
Courts
Community Outreach
Communication process required to succeed:
County-wide system that indentifies a juvenviles’ contact points and current services being
received
Open for court viewing
Use an information sharing system
School District, Police Department, Juvenile Services, and Court must agree on the data to be
shared, describe in an Interlocal Agreement, and sign the agreement.
Purchase or build the information sharing system.
Data to collect and measure for evaluation:
Data should include age, gender, race, address, home school, transfers to alternative school
services and completion status in that program
Cost/ Funding:
Share funding costs among partners within the Interlocal Agreement.
Seek Grant funding; fund raisers
Appropriate funds made available by improved attendance for further chronic absence and
truancy preventions efforts or for court programs.
Fees from crime zone areas.
Co-locate services thus saving facility and operational costs.
Look to corporate funding from defendant’s insurance coverage.
Estimate heard, but no budget developed, $1,000,000
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Evaluation
Rigorous data on the effectiveness of dropout program have been lacking to a large degree, but
there is a growing body of evidence regarding truancy reduction programs. A number of programs have
need found either to be effective for prevention of or intervention with truancy or to have promising or
emerging evidence of programmatic effectiveness. Additionally, many programs that address multiple
risk factors may have positive outcomes in regard to truancy reduction, although that may not be the
primary goals of the program. For instance, CASASTART and Operation New Hope, while not directly
targeting truancy, can reduce it.
There are also multiple programs that lack sufficient evidence to be classified as effective or
ineffective. Strategies shown to be ineffective at reducing truancy include solution-focused group
interventions (for at-risk students) (Newsome, 2004) and financial sanctions (Gandy and Schultz, 2007).
The models that show the most promise, not only of reducing truancy, but also of affecting its risk
factors, include several key components:
Parental involvement
Meaningful sanctions or consequences for truancy
Meaningful incentives for school attendance
Ongoing school-based truancy reduction programs
Involvement of community resources (e.g., law enforcement).
Evidence of Effectiveness: Data
Attendance Rates (year-end attendance)
Number of truancies and dropouts
Referrals to services
Services provided to youth and their families
Successful program completion/case dispositions
Questions to Be Considered
What impact has ___ had on school response to truancy and reporting practices?
How does the threat of prosecution affect whether parents ensure that their children attend
school?
Are truant youth and their parents or guardians receiving adequate services to address the root
causes of the truancy?
How has the number of truancies and dropouts changed during the program?
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RECOMMENDATIONS - Committee Members
Summary of October 10, 2012 Meeting
The Tarrant County Truancy Planning Committee made final suggestions for change on the draft
document received ten (10) days prior to the meeting. Then each sub-committee was given the charge to
identify four (4) suggestions for future action. Two groups made four recommendations, one group
made two recommendations.
Prepare Final Publication; Prepare an Executive Summary; Prepare Power Point; Give document
a Title – Tarrant County Truancy Solutions
Conduct Local policy & Practice Surveys
Conduct A Community Needs Assessment County-wide or Localized with Identified Partners
Conduct County-Wide Truancy Summit
o ISDs
o Law Enforcement
o Social Services
o Courts
o TCC
o All Stakeholders
Send to Commissioner’s Court through Les Smith; have Commissioner’s Court communicate
with Superintendents and other stakeholders.
Evaluations
o Rely on Agencies to report data
o Identify a Point Person that agencies will report to…
o Talk to UTA “Stephan Ateek”
o Design Reporting Metrics
Presentation – County Commissioner or appointed by County Commissioner
o Meet them where they are…include the city officials: Mayor, Police Department, City
Councils; School Board, School Administration; County Judge(s);
o Note: Individualized Attention
Identify school district partnerships and funding sources
Hold an annual follow-up meeting
o Assessment
o What worked, What didn’t
o Make adjustments as needed
Following the posting and presentation of the recommendations, the large group asked questions and
held a discussion on the recommendations. Some recommendations were combined or modified. Each
committee member was given five post-its and placed numbers 1-5. Number 1 post-it was to be place on
the person’s first recommendation, then second, third, fourth, and then fifth action recommendation.
Post-it numbers were counted. The results follow:
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6. Prepare Final Publication: Executive Summary; Power Point; and add a title Tarrant County
Truancy Solutions
This recommendation received fifteen #1 and one #3 selection
7. Send to Commissioner’s Court through Les Smith; have Commissioner’s Court communicate
with Superintendents and other stakeholders.
This recommendation received eight #2 selections and one for #1, #3, #4, #5.
8. Conduct a County-wide Needs Assessment or Localized with Identified Partners or Local Policy
and Practice Surveys ; Design a metrics of what data will be collected
This was a combination of two recommendations. One received six #3 selections and the
other six #4 selections.
9. Evaluations – Identify a point person that will collect data; Consider Stephan Ateek and rely on
agencies to report data; data to be collected must be identified prior to beginning action plan.
This received five #4 selections with no selections for #1 or #2 and one selection for #3
and #5.
10. Conduct a county-wide truancy summit including ISDs, law enforcement, social services, courts,
and other stakeholders and hold annual follow-up meetings.
The summit received ten #5 selections; with the follow-up meetings receiving five #5
selections.
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APPENDIX
PREVENTION – Chronic Absence
Program Name Agency Contact Information
Truancy Prevention
Mediation Program,
Dispute Resolution Services
of N. Texas
4304 Airport Freeway, Suite 100
Ft. Worth, TX 76117
(817) 877-4554
www.drsnorthtexas.org
Teacher Home Visits Chapel Hill Academy: Lena
Pope Home
4640 Sycamore School Road
Fort Worth, TX 76133
(817) 289-0242
www.lenapopehome.org
Attendance Incentives for
Parents/Students
Chapel Hill Academy: Lena
Pope Home
4640 Sycamore School Road
Fort Worth, TX 76133
(817) 289-0242
www.lenapopehome.org
On-Site Therapeutic
Family Counseling
The Parenting Center of
Fort Worth
2928 West Fifth Street
Fort Worth, TX 76107
(817) 332-6348
www.theparentingcenter.org
Strengthening Families
Program
Santa Fe Youth Services 7524 Mosier View Court, Suite 200
Fort Worth, Texas 76118
(817) 492-4673
INTERVENTION – Truancy
Program Name Agency Contact Information
Intervention Attendance
Incentive Program (AIP)
HEB ISD Truancy
Department
1100 Raider Rd., Suite 100
Euless, TX 76040
(817) 267-3311
Neighborhood Conference
Committee
Neighborhood Conference
Committee of Williamson
County
210 Round Rock Ave. Round Rock, TX 78664 (512) 971-2029
www.nccwilco.org
Second Opportunity for
Success
Lena Pope Home 3131 Sanguinet Street
Fort Worth, TX 76107
(817) 255-2500
www.lenapopehome.org
AimTruancy Solutions AimTruancy 2305 Cedar Springs Road
Suite 410
Dallas, Tx 75201
(214) 999-1122
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www.aimtruancy.com
Parenting with Love and
Limits
Lena Pope Home 3131 Sanguinet Street
Fort Worth, TX 76107
(817) 255-2500
www.aimtruancy.com
www.lenapopehome.org
Reconnecting Youth Santa Fe Youth Services 7524 Mosier View Court,
Suite 200
Fort Worth, Texas 76118
(817) 492-4673
Job Corps Career Training for Students 1701 N. Church Street
McKinney, TX 75069
(972) 542-2623
www.northtexas.jobcorps.gov
It should be noted that many more child and family prevention and intervention resources can be found at:
http://tarrantcares.org/tarrant.cfm