It is not just Truancy Presentation to the Education, Truancy, Dropout

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It is not just Truancy!Presentation to the
Education, Truancy, Dropout Literacy Committee

• Jonathan T. Brice
• Chief Officer
• Special Services
• Duval County Public Schools

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Presentation Format

• At-Risk Students
• Problem Statement
• National Data
• District Data
• Causation
• Truancy
• Recommended Solutions

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At Risk Students

• Students At-Risk of academic failure present the
  following symptoms
• Low Achievement
• Overage for Grade (Retention)
• Truant
• Disciplinary Offenses
• Dropout.

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Problem Statement

• Student truancy and the drop-out problem cannot
  be attributed to distinct variables but rather
  should be linked to four broad categories
  community-based, school-based, family-based, and
  individual-based variables.

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Problem Statement Continued Infinite Variables

• Infinite variables within each category
  contribute to an on-going process of school
  disengagement and truancy that culminates in
  students dropping out of school.

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Problem Statement Continued Solutions

• Solving truancy and the drop out problem
  requires a complex understanding of the
  educational, societal, and cultural phenomena
  that support or hinder student truancy and
  dropping out of school.

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National DataOf Every 100 Students
(25-29)(Education Trust, 2008)
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National Data Continued.

• 9 Seconds (Nat. Dropout Prevention Ctr.)
• 3.5 million dropouts 16-25
• 192 Billion or 1.6 GDP
• (The Last Dropout-CIS)

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District Data (DCPS, Research and Evaluation)

• Over 17,700 students absent 20 days
• 17 out of 22 high schools have dropout rates
  above the state average of 3.5. DCPS dropout is
  6.6
• 11,349 students two years overage (9 of student
  enrollment)

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District Data(DCPS, Research and Evaluation)
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Causation

• There is no single cause for At-Risk students but
  multiple variables including
• Community
• Schools
• Family
• Individual Students.

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Community

• Community-based variables leading to increased
  truancy can include dysfunctional home
  environments that cause or support student
  disengagement, peer affiliations that encourage
  skipping school, and numerous other issues.

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School

• School-based variables leading to increased
  truancy include poor instructional programs
  fostering student disengagement, ineffective use
  or the absence of attendance monitoring systems,
  inhospitable adult school culture, and numerous
  other issues.

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Family

• Family-based variables leading to increased
  truancy include dysfunctional family structures
  that inhibit or impact regular student attendance.

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Individual

• Individual-based variables leading to increased
  truancy include peer culture, disciplinary
  problems, and academic disengagement.

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Truancy Defined

• Florida law defines "habitual truant" as a
  student who has 15 or more unexcused absences
  within 90 calendar days with or without the
  knowledge or consent of the student's parent or
  guardian, and who is subject to compulsory school
  attendance.

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2007-2008 Truancy Efforts

• Three pronged strategy
• Reorganization of staff assignments
• Attendance Matrix
• Use of truancy centers

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Attendance Services Staffing
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Attendance Matrix

• Provides clear direction for schools and district
  support to schools
• Focuses both on unexcused and excused absences
• Requires earlier intervention
• See handout

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Truancy Centers

• 4 sites
• Geographically located
• Students collected by JSO and DCPS truancy
  personnel.

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Recommended Solutions

• Three pronged approach
• Create Multiple Pathways for students to
  graduate.
• Hire more attendance social workers.
• Place a graduation coach in each high school and
  middle school.

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Multiple Pathways

• Develop additional pathways for students to
  graduate. Students should be able to select from
  a broad cross-section of opportunities including
  liberals arts education, math and science
  education, technical education, skilled craft
  training, and GED.

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Attendance Social Workers

• Reducing the number of schools served by each
  attendance social worker will enable them to more
  effectively pursue truant students, document
  their social history, and then refer students and
  parents to a school or community-based service
  provider.

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Graduation Coaches

• A program in Georgia has placed one graduation
  coach in each high school. The coaches are
  responsible for identifying students at risk for
  not graduating-those who have failed course,
  state exit assessments, etc. The graduation
  coaches also facilitate business speakers,
  internships for students, and provide
  post-secondary counseling support to students.
  DCPS should add a graduation coach to each high
  school.

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Last Thoughts

• One-size fits all programming will not address
  the needs of all students.
• Varied solutions serving niche markets of
  students will work.
• Serving niche markets of students is costly but
  so is our current approach of one-size fits all
  schooling.

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Websites and Contact Information

• Education Trust
• http//www2.edtrust.org/edtrust/
• National Dropout Prevention Center/Clemson
  University
• http//www.dropoutprevention.org/
• bricej_at_educationcentral.org