In , the city of Atlanta went even further. It passed an ordinance that allowed parents to be imprisoned for 60 days if children are apprehended outside school on a weekday. Atlanta schools also refer families directly to the courts after a child has ten unexcused absences. That happened times in , and warrants were issued for the arrest of 70 parents who did not show up for required truancy meetings with a judge.
These sorts of steps have been widely imitated by other states. According to an analysis of data collected by the Education Commission of the States, a nonprofit that tracks policy trends, the era of national school reform launched by NCLB has coincided with a burst in state-level lawmaking related to school attendance. Since , when NCLB went into effect, states have passed an average of 23 new attendance-related bills per year.
At least one-third of the states have passed laws that deepen court involvement in school absence or establish stiffer legal penalties for truant students and their parents.
States have also decreased the number of absent school days required to be declared truant and pushed school administrators to report truancy cases directly to the courts. In addition, according to the National Education Association, 14 states raised the age of compulsory education from 16 to 17 or 18, a policy that President Barack Obama advocated in his State of the Union Address; others now require, for the first time, that children as young as five be enrolled in school.
Expanding the age of compulsory study increases standards for education. But it also creates a larger pool of children who can be considered truant, and thus potentially punished for it. With administrators and teachers held increasingly accountable for test scores under NCLB as well as reforms pushed by the Obama administration, some education advocates have developed a new fear: that school administrators are using truancy referrals to remove low-performing students from the standardized testing pool.
She points out that low-income students of color are both the most likely to be declared truant and are also disproportionately suspended and expelled from school. Administrators know that truancy proceedings mean that certain students will appear in court, not in class, and can lead to children being reassigned to alternative education programs not subject to the same testing pressures.
It is not unheard of to use disciplinary procedures to raise test score averages. Research from Florida and Texas suggests that administrators are more likely to mete out punishments that remove low-performing students from school during periods of high-stakes testing. The strategy, though cynical, achieves its aim. According to a paper by economist David Figlio, Florida schools that increased their suspension rates during testing demonstrated slightly higher aggregate scores in math and reading.
Our courts are not very good at getting kids back to class. A study from the Washington State Center for Court Research compared high school students who received truancy summons with kids who had the same number of unexcused absences and similar grades, but who were not called into court. The students in court experienced more subsequent absences than the ones who avoided law enforcement; they also received lower grades, and were more likely to drop out of school or be charged with a crime.
Still, some states continue to embrace court-driven consequences for school absence. A law in Delaware required schools to refer truant students for prosecution; a similar bill currently in front of the Michigan state legislature would send them to family court. In September, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law that gave county prosecutors and public defenders seats on school-based attendance review boards that can levy sanctions against truant children and their families.
That fall, as West Virginia Supreme Court Justice Robin Davis campaigned for reelection, she traveled around her home state giving a series of lectures on what she called a major driver of crime, incarceration, and joblessness: school truancy. Rowe supported Davis, too. Juvenile records are sealed, and Brandi is referred to in court documents under this pseudonym. Brandi had been suspended from school for six days after getting into a fight. When a juvenile is found to be unruly or delinquent because of truancy, the possible outcomes may include:.
Ohio law requires a school district to report habitual or chronic truancy to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Parents have a legal obligation in Ohio to ensure that their school-age children receive instruction. If a child who is habitually or chronically truant is determined to be an unruly or delinquent juvenile, then Ohio Rev. Section If your child is habitually or chronically truant, Ohio Rev. A skilled Ohio criminal defense lawyer can explain the differences between these two charges and what you might be able to expect under the unique set of facts and circumstances of your case.
Skipping school may not seem like a huge deal. However, when truancy becomes a habitual or chronic problem, the consequences can be very serious for the student and his or her parents or guardians alike. There may be legitimate reasons why a student has missed school.
A good lawyer can be a strong voice for you or your child in court proceedings to try to avoid consequences that can have a serious impact on your family.
You could even court order the parent to lock up that cell phone. A lot of courts are involved in pre-court interventions, too. You know, if the family has the electricity turned off that can cause all sorts of problems, including lapse in attendance. So get the electricity turned back on!
Schools definitely have a role in truancy too. The research shows that kids who feel that at least one person in the school cares about them in some personal way are more likely to go to school and make an effort at school. Two years ago, the Guardian took a deep look at the truancy fines in the UK. Do US laws that punish parents for truancy keep their kids in school?
Reuse this content. Education Schools Teachers Universities Students. The court may also order the teen to attend drug and alcohol education or rehabilitation courses. A court may also order a teen into psychological testing and counseling. The teen may have to attend individual counseling, group counseling, or attend family counseling with parents or guardians. Probation is also possible in truancy cases.
A court can order the truant teen to regularly report to a probation officer for a period of 6 months or more, or until the teen reaches the age of Probation can also require random drug tests, wearing a tracking bracelet, being confined to home when not at school or work, or other conditions.
In some situations a juvenile court may confine the teen to a juvenile detention center, work camp, group home, or similar facility. Detention penalties are not common in truancy cases, though they are possible.
The court may order detention on the weekends, for a specific length of time, or a combination of detention measures. Parent or guardian penalties. A juvenile court may impose several penalties against the parent or guardian of a truant teen. Common penalties include fines, attending parenting education courses, or attending family counseling. A juvenile court can also transfer a juvenile case to an adult court if the court finds the parents have violated the law, such as when neglect or abuse is present.
Talk to a Lawyer Juveniles, and their parents or legal guardians, have the right to be represented by an attorney any time they face any type of action in the juvenile justice system. Talk to a Lawyer Start here to find criminal defense lawyers near you. Practice Area Please select Zip Code.
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