LAKE COUNTY >> Lake County’s schools had one of the worst truancy rates in the state for a second year, a recent report by the California Attorney General’s Office reported.
According to the data, the county had an elementary school truancy rate of 31.8 percent in the 2013-2014 school year — second only to Lassen County (38.7 percent). Although it is a one percentage point drop from the previously recorded year, those numbers cost the six local districts nearly $3.3 million in funding for 2014-2015 school year, or $374 per pupil.
But Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg noted that the report was based upon data from software which only two of the six districts use, skewing the results. Still, he acknowledged truancies are a chronic problem.
“Regardless, our absentee rates are not acceptable,” Falkenberg said. “The loss is phenomenal. You are losing educational opportunities.”
Nor was he was he surprised by the report. In fact, he and the county office of education have worked to establish programs that address truancies — which are defined as a student being late by 30 minutes or more without a valid excuse — and attendance in general.
One of those initiatives is the Hero Project. With the use of personal coaching and technological interaction, the program helps parents, new and seasoned, to overcome life’s challenges to make them more successful fathers and mothers — especially when it comes to their children’s education.
“It’s truly a countywide, community issue” Falkenberg said.
The greatest of those challenges, the state claimed, are mostly tied to socioeconomic deficiencies.
Lake County is no exception — nearly 25 percent of its residents live in poverty. Not only does this make getting to school logistically difficult but lack of access to affordable health care keeps kids out longer, according to Falkenberg.
“In some cases, kids are absent because the car won’t start,” Upper Lake Elementary School Principal Stephanie Wayment added. “Those are real challenges.”
Her school, however, is finding success this academic year, claiming a 95 to 97 percent attendance rate. Its achievement, Wayment said, is partly due to the implementation of the Positive Behavioral Intervention System, which encourages students, parents, and the community to be active in the learning process.
Using metrics such as attendance as a benchmark, the program becomes individually intensive the more at-risk the child is. Some strategies include parental training, school-based adult mentors, multi-agency collaborative services.
“We’ve made a big push in our community by showing how important attending school is,” she said. “It’s about focusing on a positive relationship so they [students, parents, etc.] feel connected to their school.”
Another aspect of the program is providing alternatives to expulsions and suspensions. According to the Attorney General’s report, more than 25 percent of California districts changed their discipline policies in 2013-2014 to decrease absences.
