With Over 5,000 Students Skipping School Without Justification in 2019-2020 School Year, Education Officials Support Bill Seeking Holistic Approach to Truancy

A bill that seeks to equally share the responsibility between the education system and parents for addressing the problem of truancy — when a child stays away from school without good reason — was heard in the Committee on Education and Workforce Development Tuesday and favorably forwarded to the Committee on Rules and Judiciary for further vetting.  The measure, sponsored by Senator Novelle Francis who during the 32nd Legislature sponsored a similar measure, would "remove the punitive aspect from managing truancy and create a framework for which the root causes of truancy could be identified by allowing parents and all stakeholders to engage in a process that is not punitive but instead collaborative and supportive," said Mr. Francis while introducing Bill No. 34-0144.  "This pandemic and other issues have challenged us to rethink what attendance looks like," he said. "Truancy is a bigger issue than just missing school. As a law enforcement officer I've seen poor school attendance a...