This review aims to synthesize the evaluation evidence for parent-engagement programs that focus on reducing juvenile truancy as the primary outcome. Delinquent behavior will be assessed as a secondary outcome when included. This objective is guided by the following research questions: (1) what is the effectiveness of parent-engagement programs…

The BRIDGE Alternative Middle School in Lowell, Massachusetts, serves students ages 12-16 who have exhibited behavioral problems in traditional school settings, including problems such as truancy, multiple suspensions, mental health issues, peer conflicts, family dysfunction, academic problems, and gang involvement. Students referred to BRIDGE are…

The Case Management Partnership Initiative (CMPI) addresses chronic truancy by linking truant ninth graders and their families to social services and case management, along with regular interagency case management meetings. A pilot was conducted at Anacostia and Ballou High Schools in 2011-2012. The implementation evaluation found that the pilot…

High rates of truancy at some DC schools are receiving considerable attention. The Family Court cannot realistically be a primary response to the chronic truancy of thousands of chronically truant high-school students, Senior Fellow Akiva Liberman of the Justice Policy Center told the City Council. Liberman commented that family-based…

Truancy has been identified as a risk factor of criminal behavior but results are mixed as to the best means to reduce this school-based concern. The Truancy Prevention Initiative has been implemented in New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina under the direction of the Recovery School District to reduce levels of truancy, increase graduation rates,…

Afterschool programs have been operating for decades in communities across the country, and federal investment in afterschool has increased dramatically since the mid-1990s. However, even more investment in the field of afterschool, which includes before-school, afterschool and summer learning programs, is needed to keep up with the growing…

The purpose of this non-experimental correlational study was to determine the relationship between the type of attendance policies in the high schools of the 67 Florida school districts, the size of the school district (number of high school students), the socioeconomic status SES) of the school district, and the average daily attendance rate of…

Describes the administrative policy developed to deal with student truancy at Harlem South High School in Rockford, Illinois. The policy calls for intensive monitoring of attendance and involves parents as well as school officials. It is said to be successful in reducing truancy rates. (GC)

School administrators, teachers, parents, and juvenile justice officials have long been concerned about the problem of truancy in schools, especially since truancy has been linked to problem behaviors, including academic failure, school dropout, and delinquency. Thus, the prevention of truancy and programs designed to break the cycle of chronic…

Describes a program intended to improve the school attendance of truant students, called the Mentoring and Tutoring Help (MATH) program. Discusses the importance of mentors and their roles in the MATH program, and presents the 18 most critical organizational steps for truancy intervention in the program. (SR)

In 1999, the De Kalb (Georgia) Truancy School was created, with cooperation from the county board of education, the superintendent, and the county juvenile court. The school gives chronically truant students an educational setting focused on their individual circumstances and needs. Average daily attendance for 51 students is 97 percent. (MLH)

This truancy prevention publication provides a general background discussion on the issue of truancy but mainly centers on the nuts and bolts of developing and implementing an effective community wide collaborative to address truancy. The first section provides some understanding of the factors associated with truancy and the resulting high costs…

Students who are at risk of dropping out of school can be identified retrospectively as early as third grade on the basis of attendance patterns, academic performance, and behavior. Check & Connect is a model designed to promote student engagement, support regular attendance, and improve the likelihood of school completion. The program has been…

This report describes an art-based intervention program with at-risk youth that was inspired by the Project Self-Discovery model (Milkman, Wanberg, & Robinson, 1996). Twelve middle-school students from a small city in a mid-Atlantic state participated in the program. The program goals included making art in order to empower the participants…

Examined the effectiveness of the Wisconsin Learnfare experiment that requires teens to attend school regularly as a condition of receiving family financial aid. Findings from state social services data reveal that, despite a $1.5 million "savings" attributed to the program between September 1988 and December 1989, tremendous family…