A task force begins work to solve the problem of Tulsa kids missing school.
It’s part of City Councilor Karen Gilbert’s work to craft a truancy ordinance. The task force includes representatives of Jenks, Tulsa and Union public schools, and Gilbert said what they had to say at the group's first meeting reinforced how big of a problem truancy is.
"TPS alone, we were told that there are 6,714 students that are chronically truant. So, right there, that number is pretty alarming," Gilbert said.
Todd Nelson with Union Public Schools said truancy is often a symptom of an issue like a student or parent’s health problems, homelessness, or poverty.
"Very rarely do they set out to say, 'I’m going to keep my child home from school because I think that’s what would be best for them,'" Nelson said.
The task force is looking for solutions that include access to social services, therapeutic courts and prevention programs when appropriate. While each district has a multilayered approach to truancy, some say state budget cuts have hampered their reach.
"Beginning with an attendance clerk who tries to contact home and on, and it escalates through the school counselors and the principal and then at the district level and a homeless liaison," Nelson said of Union's approach. "And if the city would come alongside, perhaps that would give us one more layer of support to help intervene."
District officials aren't looking for a punitive approach to dealing with truancy. Union has seen a nearly 70 percent drop in truancy cases going to court from last school year.
