Truancy Matters: Research, Policies and Practices Coalition for Juvenile Justice June 9 12, 2007

2. Agenda Overview of Truancy Continuum of Support Framework Effective Family-Community-Court Approaches Case Study of Denver, Colorado Resources and Materials

3. National Center for School Engagement (NCSE) An initiative of the Colorado Foundation for Families and Children Launched in September 2003 Promotes school success

4. Mission To ensure school success for at-risk youth and their families by improving school engagement.

5. Strategies Identify and promote best practices that are evidence and research-based Collaborate with schools, families/communities, private/public agencies, courts and law enforcement

6. Strategies Utilize approaches that are culturally competent, family-centered, and strengths-based Implement methods to integrate the 3 A�s of School Engagement

7. 3 A�s of School Engagement Attendance�Schools, families, courts, and law enforcement use culturally-responsive, evidence-based strategies to improve student attendance. Includes reducing truancy, addressing barriers to attendance and high mobility.

8. 3 A�s of School Engagement Attachment�Schools establish meaningful connections with youth and their families through caring, support, and mutually-defined expectations. Includes after school programs, prevention and family support programs, parent/school collaborations, welcoming school environments...

9. 3 A�s of School Engagement Achievement�Communities, schools, and families assure that students have the tools and resources to complete courses and graduate from high school. Involves planning for success, closing the achievement gap... Educators seek to improve educational practices to promote school success for all children.

10. Theory of Change School success is based on integration of attachment, attendance, and achievement. NCSE uses this Theory of Change to develop and implement strategies that ensure school success and school completion.

12. Overview of Truancy:Prevalence

13. NCES Common Core of Data School district and state level data Trend data (you can build your own table) Data available 12th grade dropout rate 12th graders received a diploma 9th graders received a diploma Site: www.nces.ed.gov

14. Truancy Statistics Currently no national definition No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requires state definition of truancy NCLB requires states collect truancy rates (not only attendance rates)

15. Truancy Data Sources National Juvenile Court Data Archive (OJJDP) Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBS)/CDC Health Behavior in School Age Children (WHO/SAMHSA) National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY/BLS)

16. Some Truancy Statistics Around 7% of students report they did not go to school on one or more of the past 30 days because they felt unsafe at school or on their way to/from school. (YRBS) Rate of 9-12 graders that report missing school due to safety concerns has grown 50% since 1993 (YRBS) A longitudinal study of youth ages 12-16 found that 38% reported being late to school without an excuse (NLSY).

17. Dropout/Graduation Statistics Use dropout statistics as a proxy for truancy Raging national debate on graduation/dropout rates Many limitations of data Varying definitions (event, status, promotion indices, etc.)

18. Dropout/Graduation Statistics Varying sources of data (U.S Census Bureau, Common Core of Data, longitudinal studies) Result in a range of national rates 87% (NCES) class of 2001 69% (Swanson, 2004) class of 2001 72% (Greene, 2006) class of 2003

19. National Drop-Out Rates According to the Alliance for Excellent Education (2006) 1.2 Million students do not graduate with their peers. 70% of the nation�s students graduate from high schools with a regular diploma. Only 59% of African-American students graduate.

20. Dropout Statistics According to the Current Population Survey (Census Data) In 2001, 3.8 million young adults (about 11% of those age 16-24) were not in high school and had not completed high school or received a GED Youth in the lowest income families at greatest risk of dropout

21. Overview of Truancy: Impacts and Contributing Factors

22. Linking Absence to Delinquency

23. Effect of Truancy on DelinquencyOnset of Serious Assault Crimes by Age 14

24. Effect of Truancy on Delinquency Onset of Serious Property Crimes by Age 14 Class Skipper 4.69 times as likely Minor Truant (1-3 Days) 5.17 Moderate Truant (4-9Days) 11.46 Chronic Truant (> 9 Days) 21.53 Dr. Kimberly Henry, American Society of Criminology, Nov 2005

25. Truancy and Drug Use Onset of Marijuana Use Class Skipper 4.11 times as likely Minor Truant (1-3 days) 7.17 Moderate Truant (4-9 days) 12.37 Chronic Truant (> 9 days) 16.08

26. Crime and Dropouts  75% of America�s state prison inmates did not complete high school A 10% increase in male graduation rate would reduce murder and assault rates by about 20% Dropouts are more than 8 times as likely to be in jail or prison than high school graduates. Source: Alliance for Excellent Education

27. Common Challenges for Truants found in the OJJDP National Study on Truancy

28. What Happens to Truant Youth? Educational failure, poor achievement Poor employability, work stability Delinquency and adult criminality Unstable personal relationships Poverty Dependence on public assistance

29. What Happens to Their Families? Unsupervised children get into trouble Parents are called away from work to the school or truancy court Family conflict due to school absences and lack of academic achievement

30. Impact of Truancy There are Systemic Effects School disruption School test scores suffer Operating revenue decreases Juvenile courts flooded Daytime crime escalates Later criminal behavior

31. Factors Impacting Truancy

32. Factors Impacting Truancy

33. Parents unaware of problem Domestic violence/abuse, neglect Drug and alcohol abuse Substance abuse Lack of awareness of the law Education not valued Family Influences

34. Typical Characteristics for Families of Chronic Truants Poverty Working students Single parent homes High mobility rates Parents holding multiple jobs Families not engaged with school

35. What are the costs of truancy? Short term costs School and court expenditures Cost of sentencing options (detention) Juvenile crime associated with truancy Long term costs Adult crime later on Lower income tax revenues Increased social service expenditures I hoped to measure changes in the short term costs of truancy, except for school expenditures. I didn�t expect school expenditures to change, because school interventions come before either the TRP or court. So I didn�t try to estimate them, either. Clearly, one cannot measure changes in the long-term costs, but we can predict them.I hoped to measure changes in the short term costs of truancy, except for school expenditures. I didn�t expect school expenditures to change, because school interventions come before either the TRP or court. So I didn�t try to estimate them, either. Clearly, one cannot measure changes in the long-term costs, but we can predict them.

36. Court: Results of Colorado Study The Pueblo court looks a bit less efficient by comparison, but the number of cases they saw dropped substantially in 00-01 and I�m not sure my method of cost estimation was sensitive enough to adjust for that. If you use the same costs and the filing number from 99-00, the per truant cost matches that of Adams. Focus on breakeven success rate. Explain 30% success rate.The Pueblo court looks a bit less efficient by comparison, but the number of cases they saw dropped substantially in 00-01 and I�m not sure my method of cost estimation was sensitive enough to adjust for that. If you use the same costs and the filing number from 99-00, the per truant cost matches that of Adams. Focus on breakeven success rate. Explain 30% success rate.

37. TRP: Results Pueblo looks less efficient, but remember that they pay for all the school-level attendance follow-up that is not included in the costs for Adams or Denver. School district employees would do well to focus on this number. Your work simply must pay off.Pueblo looks less efficient, but remember that they pay for all the school-level attendance follow-up that is not included in the costs for Adams or Denver. School district employees would do well to focus on this number. Your work simply must pay off.

38. Truancy Reduction Saves Public Funds Estimated Per Capita Savings in Public Spending and Income Taxes For Each Truant Student Who Completes High School Adams County, CO - $208,371 Denver, CO - $215,649 Pueblo, CO - $209,550

39. National Costs of Dropouts Increasing the graduation rate and college matriculation rate of male students by 5% could lead to a combined savings and revenue of $8 Billion per year. 75% of America�s state prison inmates did not complete high school. A 10% increase in male graduation rate would reduce murder and assault rates by about 20%. Source: Alliance for Excellent Education

40. Effective Interventions:Continuum of Support Framework

41. A Continuum of Support Incentives Prevention Early intervention Intensive intervention Deep-end consequences Schools where students attend regularly have teachers who foster warn empathic relationships with pupils, teach well, enthusiastically, and in interesting ways, are consistent and fair, treat children with respect, all students a sense of responsibility and freedom in their education, and keep control.Schools where students attend regularly have teachers who foster warn empathic relationships with pupils, teach well, enthusiastically, and in interesting ways, are consistent and fair, treat children with respect, all students a sense of responsibility and freedom in their education, and keep control.

42. A Continuum of Support

43. State/County/Municipal Policies File CHINS/PINS File D&N Withhold TANF Daytime curfew Subpoena school records School revenue based on average daily enrollment Include school truancy rates in report card Claim revenues for students with truancy petition

44. Court Sanctioning Policies Fine parents & students Arrest parents Contempt citations Suspend driver�s license Detention Community service Court-ordered family or individual therapy Court-ordered tutoring or health services Waive fines with improved attendance

45. Community Contributions Set community standards that value going to school (involve retired persons) Work with businesses to promote school attendance Improve transportation access Increase awareness of the problem and the solutions Connect schools with law enforcement and youth services

46. Best Practices Truancy Programs must be locally designed based on the needs of the community and starting with best practices

47. Effective Family-Community-Court Approaches

48. Principles of Effective Programs Include special attention to health and special education needs Data driven decision-making Community and Business involvement Focus on school transition years Include public awareness campaigns Meaningful parent/family involvement planning together toward solutions with school & agencies

49. Community-Based Programs Community assessment center to help families access services (health, mental health, tutoring, mentoring etc.) Community workers such as probation officers or social works act as liaisons between youth, school and JJ Case management services

50. Community-Based Programs Walking school bus After school programs (recreation & educational) Home visitation Clothing and school supply drives School Attendance Awareness Campaigns

53. Law Enforcement Partnering with Schools � Collaborate Community Truancy Centers used to drop off truants can be more convenient than expecting officers to take students back to school Home Visits � Knock and Talks are immediately effective but only result in long term results if the school follows up with the returning children promptly.

54. Use of Detention Effective as a deterrent to parents of elementary truants � use as a last ditch effort only but make sure the public is aware of the possibility. Unintended consequences � Truants can acquire bad habits and are exposed to criminal behavior Ineffective at addressing the reasons why students are truant Most expensive intervention in dealing with truancy

55. Alternatives to Detention Requiring students to tour detention and college facilities Requiring students to prepare a budget based on the minimum wage to help them focus on their futures Ordering schools to modify schedules to meet health or work needs, or inform students about alternative learning programs Ordering truants to join school clubs or participate in community activities to encourage community or school engagement

56. Alternatives to Detention, cont. Ordering parents to attend school with their children, or have weekly meetings with school staff Addressing mental health and substance abuse Deterring students with the threat of restricted driving privileges, ankle monitoring, or probation

57. Jacksonville, FLA 22 Target schools, 180 Truancy Quasi-Judicial Hearings annually Varying degrees of case management for youth served Compliance with mandated attendance meetings tracked at target schools Program focuses on working with parents of elementary school children

58. Court-Based Best Practices Work with the whole family, not just the youth Judges can be effective partners or leaders Court-based truancy efforts are best targeted at truants who are not also delinquent Judges work collaboratively with schools, superintendents, law enforcement and community services

59. Court-Based Best Practices Use incentives for improved attendance Celebrate improvement Follow-up with truants should be regular and prompt

60. Alternatives to Court Youth Court Mediation Court sponsored quasi-judicial proceedings in schools and court houses Diversion Truancy workshops Knock and talks

61. Local ActionWhere do we start? Create both incentives and graduated sanctions Involve students and parents in planning programs to improve attendance and engagement Take baselines and track progress

62. CREATIVE OPTIONSDenver, Colorado

63. The Denver Data Collected data from Denver Public Schools (DPS) to assess prevalence of truancy Work sponsored by National Truancy Prevention Association Assessment gives a better indication than attendance rates or drop out statistics

64. Flow chart of consequences for truancy, each color represents a community group, asked each constituent for data and did interviews with each group This is what we have so far. Flow chart of consequences for truancy, each color represents a community group, asked each constituent for data and did interviews with each group This is what we have so far.

65. Exploratory Methods Interviews with key stakeholders (school, court, human services, city, community) Focus groups with students and parents Secondary data collection and analysis from DPS, DDHS, Judicial and law enforcement Collection of relevant policies Number of interviews � 10 people were interviewed and still need to interview more and that includes the judges � scheduling difficulties , glad to see them today 2 student focus groups and 2 parent focus groups Policies were collected and are still under review. Preliminary data and the intent here to day is to create dialogue about the data and its meaning and to generate additional data collection direction (e.g. judges, teachers who else?) Number of interviews � 10 people were interviewed and still need to interview more and that includes the judges � scheduling difficulties , glad to see them today 2 student focus groups and 2 parent focus groups Policies were collected and are still under review. Preliminary data and the intent here to day is to create dialogue about the data and its meaning and to generate additional data collection direction (e.g. judges, teachers who else?)

66. DPS Average Unexcused Absences by Grade This is the average number of unexcused absences by grade. So it is the total absences divided by the total number of students. This is what I call the swoosh and the hook graph. Take a look at the pattern, it is a swoosh and a hook What is the interpretation from this? So we see high unexcused absences in kindergarten. This is a little misleading because some kindergarten's are only a half day but these data only include more than a half day absences so kindergarteners who miss a half day, their entire school day, would not be included in the data. So unexcused absence may be underestimated. Also most kindergartens and many first graders are not 7 years of age so it could be that parents think they don�t need to have excuses for absences. Finally, another interpretation is that families are learning about the importance of school and attendance and are adjusting to gettign their child so school regularly, hence the drop in first grade. Now the peak in 9th grade � what does this mean. We know that we lose a lot of students out of the 9th grade. The total number of student ever enrolled in 9th grade is ***** So we have a lot of 9th grader who don�t enroll the following year. Is it any surprise that 9th graders have more unexcused absences that other high schoolers. What happens, are they not prepared for high school and so they flounder and drop out? Do they age out? We don�t know. This is the average number of unexcused absences by grade. So it is the total absences divided by the total number of students. This is what I call the swoosh and the hook graph. Take a look at the pattern, it is a swoosh and a hook What is the interpretation from this? So we see high unexcused absences in kindergarten. This is a little misleading because some kindergarten's are only a half day but these data only include more than a half day absences so kindergarteners who miss a half day, their entire school day, would not be included in the data. So unexcused absence may be underestimated. Also most kindergartens and many first graders are not 7 years of age so it could be that parents think they don�t need to have excuses for absences. Finally, another interpretation is that families are learning about the importance of school and attendance and are adjusting to gettign their child so school regularly, hence the drop in first grade. Now the peak in 9th grade � what does this mean. We know that we lose a lot of students out of the 9th grade. The total number of student ever enrolled in 9th grade is ***** So we have a lot of 9th grader who don�t enroll the following year. Is it any surprise that 9th graders have more unexcused absences that other high schoolers. What happens, are they not prepared for high school and so they flounder and drop out? Do they age out? We don�t know.

67. Percent of DPS Chronic Truants by Grade Now let�s see the pattern for chronic truancy and grade. Again, it is the swoosh and the hook. These data are in a chart on your fact sheet, The table is labeled percent and number of chronic truants by school year So you can get a better sense of the trend there. 14% of elementary students were chronically truant last year. 18% of elementary students were chronically truant last year. And 33% of high school students were chronically truant last year. Now let�s see the pattern for chronic truancy and grade. Again, it is the swoosh and the hook. These data are in a chart on your fact sheet, The table is labeled percent and number of chronic truants by school year So you can get a better sense of the trend there. 14% of elementary students were chronically truant last year. 18% of elementary students were chronically truant last year. And 33% of high school students were chronically truant last year.

68. Percent of Chronic Truants and Their Exit Status Approximately 60 % of students who left DPS for juvenile incarceration or detention were chronically truant. Approximately 60% of students who were expelled from DPS were chronically truant. Approximately 16 % of students who attended more than one school in a school year are chronically truant.

69. Percent of Chronic Truants Who Drop Out Approximately 20% of students who left to be home schooled were chronically truant. Approximately 13% of student whose exit code was �mutual consent (under the age 16)�, �runaway or other causes�, or �no trace of enrollment in another school� were chronically truant. Approximately 50 % of students whose exit code was �dropout� were chronically truant. Assume that truancy leads to drop out so when I combined the exit codes and looked at chronic truancy, I was surprised to see only 20% were chronically truant so I cut the data by dropout code and the other codes which I would also consider dropout and found that dropouts were about 50% truant while the other codes were only 13% truant. If asked: Mutual consent under the age of 16 included 2 students 02-03, 6 � 03-04 and 18 � 04-05,for a total of 26 students, only 2 were white the others were AA and HI. Grades ranged from 6 � 11. Assume that truancy leads to drop out so when I combined the exit codes and looked at chronic truancy, I was surprised to see only 20% were chronically truant so I cut the data by dropout code and the other codes which I would also consider dropout and found that dropouts were about 50% truant while the other codes were only 13% truant. If asked: Mutual consent under the age of 16 included 2 students 02-03, 6 � 03-04 and 18 � 04-05,for a total of 26 students, only 2 were white the others were AA and HI. Grades ranged from 6 � 11.

70. Quotes from Focus Groups

71. Let�s leave that for a minute and think about how truancy affect daytime juvenile crime These are incidents of crime � most likely these are arrests but not necessarily � not individual youth but the unit is incidents Notice that the the number of incidents in Denver by youth age 10-17 is 1635 during the school hours, while during the same amount of time outside of school into the evening hours is only 968 So 63% of the juvenile crime by youth between 7:30 and 10:30 is committed during school hours � significant because kids are supposed to be in school 26% more incidents occur during school hours than during non-school hours. Let�s leave that for a minute and think about how truancy affect daytime juvenile crime These are incidents of crime � most likely these are arrests but not necessarily � not individual youth but the unit is incidents Notice that the the number of incidents in Denver by youth age 10-17 is 1635 during the school hours, while during the same amount of time outside of school into the evening hours is only 968 So 63% of the juvenile crime by youth between 7:30 and 10:30 is committed during school hours � significant because kids are supposed to be in school 26% more incidents occur during school hours than during non-school hours.

72. Resources and Materials

73. Visit NCSE�s Truancy Website www.schoolengagement.org info@schoolengagement.org 303-837-8466 Contacts: Judy Martinez, Director, x105 Dr. Krystina Finlay, Senior Research Analyst, x104

74. On the Website: Resources! Evaluation Reports Sample TRAIN Reports Links to Helpful Websites Publications on Best Practices �How-to� guides Fact Sheets Policy Papers Cost-Benefit Analyses

75. Research Report �Innovations in Truancy Prevention Practice: An Inventory of Selected Collaborations from around the United States� Sponsored by the National Truancy Prevention Association Available on Research and Publications Page of www.schoolengagement.org

76. Evaluate Your Truancy Reduction Efforts The Truancy Reduction Application Interface, or TRAIN, is a secure, web-based database that allows program staff to track the progress of youth receiving school attendance services. TRAIN includes information on students' school attachment, achievement, and attendance, their demographics, mental and physical health, family and peer relationships, and detailed service history.

77. TRAIN TRAIN incorporates information from quarterly updates to give a comprehensive picture of one student over time, or a group of students selected according to user specifications.� With a click of the mouse, the data can be organized into user-defined data tables. Standardized charts and graphs can be created based on up-to-date information. The system, managed and maintained by NCSE staff, is available for an initial training fee and an annual administration fee.

79. On the Website: ACCESS to TRAIN YOUR GUEST LOGON: attendance@TRAIN.org Password: backtoschool

80. On the Website:Truancy Program Registry

81. On the NCSE Website:Truancy Listserv Subscribe to this discussion list and talk with others in the fields of Juvenile Justice, Education, and Human Services about issues regarding out-of-school youth.� Talk with others who have had similar successes and challenges in implementing truancy reduction efforts.� Ask questions and share effective strategies! AND: Sign up for the NCSE e-newsletter

82. Contact Information Judith Martinez, MURP - Director Krystina A. Finlay, Ph.D. - Senior Research Analyst National Center for School Engagement 303 E. 17th Ave. Ste. 400 Denver, CO 80203 303-837-8466, ext. 105 (Judy) & 104 (Krystina) info@schoolengagement.org