Giving Compass' Take:

• States are getting more creative when addressing school truancy issues in an effort to stop criminalizing young people and offer supportive services as an alternative to the juvenile system. 

• How is this a step in the right direction and will it potentially encourage more supportive diversion programs for the broader criminal justice system? 

• Read about the steps that educators can take to prevent chronic absenteeism in schools. 

The District of Columbia Public Schools caught local and national attention last year with news of substantial absenteeism. In response, the district proposed changes to graduation requirements and definitions of truancy.

DC is not alone in struggling to respond to absenteeism. Across the country, jurisdictions attempt to get kids in school by punishing or fining parents, involving child welfare agencies, and punishing students themselves, sometimes sending them to court or juvenile detention.

But other states are responding to these students and their families in ways that acknowledge contextual barriers to attending school and show promising alternatives to punishment.

Young people labeled as “delinquent,” “unruly,” or “in need of supervision” often face challenges and negative outcomes. These labels often lead to further justice system involvement or school disengagement. Criminalizing truant young people through court involvement and subsequent detention risks exposing them to abuse and sexual victimization, and increasing their likelihood of advancing deeper into the juvenile justice system.

States such as Connecticut and Utah have passed amendments to repeal statutes that label truant youth “status offenders” or “delinquent.” Many jurisdictions have reinvested resources to build school, family, and community capacity to address truancy, moving kids away from the juvenile justice system.

  • Schools are embracing positive incentives in lieu of retributive responses to truancy.
  • Schools are partnering with families to prevent truancy.
  • Collaborative, interagency partnerships rooted in the communities of truant youth show potential.

Consensus is growing that the justice system is ill-equipped to address school absences that may be symptomatic of underlying challenges facing the family at home or the student in school; these problems warrant services and support, not stigma and punishment.

Read the full article about addressing school truancy by Alexandra Ricks and Sino Esthappan at Urban Institute