Studying the Root Causes of Truancy (H. 4735)

Truancy, or chronic absence from school, has been linked to low graduation rates and other negative outcomes for children. This bill would establish a Truancy Root Cause Intervention Study Committee to assess current truancy intervention programs and investigate the factors that lead to truancy, including home environment and other circumstances.

We support this bill because: As with other behavior issues and problems in children’s lives, the solution to truancy must involve more than punishment. Establishing a commission to study the problem may force our state to confront broader structural issues including housing insecurity, poverty, and a recent mass deportation campaign that has contributed to the truancy of students from immigrant communities.