Steve Snodgrass, Chair

331-4700

Ralston Public Schools

Next general meeting of all members will be announced on this web page.

The truancy committee continues to work toward finding solutions to truancy and to advocate for a best practices approach in the community.  Follow the links below to download documents in use and created by each of 4 subcommittees listed below.  Each subcommittee focuses on different aspects this complex issue.

Primary Prevention: Cultural strategies - to support regular school attendance, building and community wide prevention efforts, public awareness

Secondary Prevention: Individual/Family strategies - for schools and agencies, determining root causes of chronic absenteeism and appropriate assessment and interventions.

Pre-Court Intervention: Behavioral strategies - uniform reporting procedures and interventions, truancy patterns, case planning.

Justice Intervention: Social strategies – multisystem strategies, procedures, pilot programs for cases in the juvenile justice system.

Preliminary Model Program:  A short powerpoint summarizing development of current school attendance initiatives

Please contact the committee chair to become involved!

Making Attendance a Priority – Steering and Subcommittee Overview and Reporting Update

Truancy and Excessive Absenteeism:  A Best Practices Manual for Schools

Excerpts from the Manual:

4 Quadrant Model:  Causes and Contributors

4 Quadrant Model:  Interventions for Schools

Attendance Intervention Record

Top 10 Reasons, a bi-fold flyer for schools

Intervention submission form

Nebraska Flow Chart

Dr Christopher Kearney, PhD School Refusal Training Materials

October 13, 2008 Community-wide training

School Refusal Assessment Scale (SRAS)- Revised, Child Version

School Refusal Assessment Scale (SRAS) – Revised, Parent Version

Dr. KearneyÕs October 13 Powerpoint

MCAC Handouts to facilitate attendance discussion

School Engagement Strategies gathered from participants (excel)

School Engagement Strategies gathered from participants (pdf format)

February 9, 2009 Community-wide training

Dr. KearneyÕs February 9 Powerpoint

Sample graph of SRAS results (excel spreadsheet and embedded graph)

History

In September, 1999 MCAC created an additional committee, a Truancy Task Force, to examine the need for understanding and working with issues of excessive school absenteeism and truancy. With involvement from the Douglas County Attorney – Juvenile Division, School Social Workers, Community Agencies and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, the Truancy Committee researched and published a best practices manual for schools.  In 2001 the manual was distributed to school Principals in all public and parochial schools in Douglas and Sarpy County.

With a recent membership total of over 60 representatives from Douglas and Sarpy Juvenile Court and County Attorney Offices, School Districts, HHS, Juvenile Probation, Omaha Police Department, Juvenile Assessment Center, University of Nebraska Omaha, the City of Omaha MayorÕs Office and many community service agencies, we are poised to become a model of best practices and innovation in the area of truancy and school refusal.