Washington State Institute for Public Policy August 1996
TRUANCY PETITION UPDATE: September 1995 - June 1996 BACKGROUND: In 1995, the Washington State Legislature passed E2SSB 5439 (known as the “Becca Bill”). Some minor changes were made to the bill during the 1996 session through ESHB 2640. This legislation gave parents, police, schools, and courts the ability to intervene earlier in the lives of at-risk youth and students with school attendance problems. As the student accumulates unexcused absences, schools are required to notify parents, conference with parents and students to develop a plan for success, and ultimately, file a “truancy petition” in juvenile court for students with five or more unexcused absences in one month (or ten unexcused absences in a year)1. The petition process allows courts to assume jurisdiction in truancy cases. Students found in violation of a court order can be ordered to attend: 1) their current school, or 2) another educational program or school. If the student does not obey the order, a judge may send the student to a detention center, or require community service. The judge may also order parents to pay a $25 fine for each day that the student violates a court order to attend school.2 In January 1996, an Institute report outlined the first year’s experience implementing the law, reviewed the need to develop a statewide definition of unexcused absences3, and discussed prohibiting schools from suspending or expelling students as a response to truancy.4 This issue brief analyzes the number of petitions filed in Washington State during the 1995-96 school year.
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ESHB 2640 changed the provisions regarding when schools must file a truancy petition. After the fifth unexcused absence, schools may either file a petition or refer the student to a community truancy board. At the seventh unexcused absence, school districts are required to file a petition, even if the student has been referred to a community truancy board. 2 RCW 28A.225.090 3 Following the 1996 legislative session, “unexcused absences” was defined to mean, “that a child has failed to attend the majority of hours or periods in an average school day or has failed to comply with a more restrictive school district policy.” [RCW 28A.225.020] 4 Washington State Institute for Public Policy. Truancy: Preliminary Findings on Washington’s 1995 Law, January 1996. 1
FINDINGS - JUVENILE COURT: 1. Between September 1995 and June 1996, 9,219 truancy petitions were filed in juvenile court. 2. Total filings increased from 1,019 petitions in April to 2,687 petitions in May 1996. Most of this increase can be attributed to a rise in petitions filed by King County school districts5. School district officials gave two main reasons for the increase in petitions: a) school districts improving their efficiency in the filing process, and b) students accumulating 10 or more unexcused absences at the end of the school year.
Truancy Petitions Filed in Juvenile Court: 1995-1996 School Year 3,000 2,687 2,500
2,000
1,500 1,047 1,000
994
1,018
1,019
724
592
571
Oct. 1995
Nov. 1995
541
500 26 0 Sept. 1995
Dec. 1995
Jan. 1996
Feb. 1996
Mar. 1996
Apr. 1996
May 1996
June 1996
*Sources: SCOMIS (Superior Court Management Information System) Truancy Filings Report, from Office of the Administrator for the Courts. Please Note: This chart indicates the number of petitions filed in juvenile court, not the number of students who received a petition.
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2
King County Juvenile Courts received 237 truancy petitions in April and 1,862 truancy petitions in May 1996.
FILING RATES: •
For the 1995-96 school year, the statewide filing average was 9.12 truancy petitions per 1000 enrolled students.
Filing Rate per 1000 Students AVERAGE
9.12 20.33
Yakima Jefferson
18.86
Cow litz
•
•
While King County schools filed the largest number of truancy petitions during the 1995-96 school year (3,577), four other counties reported a higher rate of petition filing per 1000 students. School districts in Yakima County had the highest filing rate (20.33 petitions per 1000 students). During the school year, 953 petitions were filed in Yakima juvenile courts.
17.44
Skagit
16.74 15.05
King Mason
13.30
Clallam
13.20
Chelan
11.78
Okanogan
11.41
Clark
9.47
Snohomish
8.91
Lew is
5.99
Thurston
5.96
Douglas
5.72
Kitsap
5.65
Spokane
5.39
Skamania
5.38
Grays Harbor
4.65
Pend Oreille
4.64
Garfield
4.41
Pacific
4.37
Whatcom
4.07
Grant
3.89
Klickitat
3.30
Kittitas
*Sources: SCOMIS (Superior Court Management Information System) Truancy Filings Report, from Office of the Administrator for the Courts. Enrollment data from October 1995 K-12 Headcount from OSPI (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction). Note: Grays Harbor County reports does not report truancy petitions directly to SCOMIS. Their information was reported by telephone or fax.
2.95
Walla Walla
2.53
Pierce
2.47
Island
2.34
Stevens
2.23
San Juan
2.20
Whitman
2.19
Ferry
0.72
Benton
0.54
Franklin
0.41
Asotin
0.27
Wahkiakum 0.00 Lincoln
0.00
Columbia
0.00
0.00
5.00
10.00
15.00
20.00
Filing Rate (per 1000 students)
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TRUANCY PETITIONS IN WASHINGTON’S EDUCATIONAL SERVICE DISTRICTS: At the completion of the school year, Washington school districts are eligible to receive state funding to offset the administrative and clerical costs of filing truancy petitions. The 1995 Legislature allocated $3 million to meet these costs for the 1995-97 biennium. At the end of the 1995-96 school year, 162 of Washington’s 296 school districts reported filing truancy petitions.6 These districts were reimbursed approximately $193 for each petition filed, for a total of $1.5 million for the 1995-96 school year. The map below shows petitions reported by school districts in the nine educational service districts. Total Truancy Petitions and Filing Rates Washington State Educational Service Districts
ESD 189 1,310 petitions (10.82 / 1000 students)
ESD 171 ESD 101
514 petitions (17.22 / 1000 students)
635 petitions
ESD 114
440 petitions (5.34 / 1000 students)
(15.56 / 1000 students)
ESD 121 2,233 petitions (5.52 / 1000 students)
984 petitions
ESD 113
(12.30 / 1000 students)
456 petitions (8.90 / 1000 students)
ESD 105
ESD 123 331 petitions
ESD 112
(7.22 / 1000 students)
854 petitions (10.25 / 1000 students)
*Sources: Total petitions per ESD from annual report by each school district to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. These petitions include only the school districts that reported filings to OSPI for cost reimbursement purposes. Enrollment data from October 1995 K-12 Headcount (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction).
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Source: Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, July 1996. See Appendix for listing of all school districts who reported filing truancy petitions.
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LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS: High Enrollments The filing rate for each school district varied widely. For school districts with the largest enrollments in Washington state, the filing rate ranged between 39.48 petitions per 1000 students (Yakima) and 0.29 petitions per 1000 students (Clover Park). Seattle school district enrolls the largest number of students in the state (approximately 47,000). In 199596, Seattle schools filed 13.99 petitions per 1000 students. The following table lists the number of petitions filed in the school districts with the highest enrollments in Washington state. Truancy Petitions Filed by Washington State School Districts with the Highest Annual Enrollment: 1995-96 School Year
District Seattle Spokane Tacoma Kent Lake Washington Edmonds Federal Way Vancouver Northshore Highline Evergreen (Clark) Puyallup Everett Bellevue Bethel Yakima Clover Park North Thurston Central Kitsap Kennewick Mukilteo Renton Auburn South Kitsap Issaquah Battle Ground Bellingham
ESD
County
121 101 121 121 121 189 121 112 121 121 112 121 189 121 121 105 121 113 114 123 189 121 121 114 121 112
King Spokane Pierce King King Snohomish King Clark King King Clark Pierce Snohomish King Pierce Yakima Pierce Thurston Kitsap Benton Snohomish King King Kitsap King Clark
Total Petitions (Sept. - June)
Annual Enrollment
Filing Rate (per 1000 students)
654 366 86 140 61 238 168 23 21 147 288 54 88 25 9 546 4 91 101 199 160 116 303 61 23 91
46,757 32,341 31,596 24,492 24,332 20,868 20,579 19,910 19,226 18,209 17,596 17,304 17,136 15,391 14,326 13,829 13,692 13,150 13,134 12,635 12,191 12,173 12,113 11,635 11,464 10,303
13.99 11.32 2.72 5.72 2.51 11.41 8.16 1.16 1.09 8.07 16.37 3.12 5.14 1.62 0.63 39.48 0.29 6.92 7.69 15.75 13.12 9.53 25.01 5.24 2.01 8.83
189 Whatcom 69 10,090 6.84 *Sources: Total petitions from annual report by each school district to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. These petitions include only the school districts that reported filings to OSPI for cost reimbursement purposes. Enrollment data from October 1995 K-12 Headcount (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction).
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LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS: High Filing Rates The truancy petition process requires a high degree of cooperation and communication between parents, teachers, school administrators, and court officials. During the first year of the new law’s implementation, school districts and courts were asked to draw on existing resources to develop the most effective methods of dealing with truancies. Schools from both small rural towns and large cities were active in the petition process. The following table lists schools districts that filed 20 or more petitions per 1000 enrolled students. Washington State School Districts Filing 20 or More Truancy Petitions per 1000 Enrolled Students: 1995-96 School Year
District Nespelem Wapato Omak Yakima Index Mt Vernon Grand Coulee Dam Brewster North Mason Moses Lake Washougal Longview Auburn Sunnyside Port Townsend Prosser Port Angeles Shoreline Granger Kelso Quilcene Sultan White Pass Burlington Edison
ESD 171 105 171 105 189 189 171 171 114 171 112 112 121 105 114 123 114 121 105 112 114 189 113 189
County Okanogan Yakima Okanogan Yakima Snohomish Skagit Grant Okanogan Mason Grant Clark Cowlitz King Yakima Jefferson Benton Clallam King Yakima Cowlitz Jefferson Snohomish Lewis Skagit
Total Petitions (Sept. - June) 13 161 100 546 1 151 29 27 69 165 66 194 303 116 44 63 118 220 27 113 6 38 20 66
Enrollment 229 3,426 2,515 13,829 31 5,069 985 934 2,432 6,092 2,597 7,692 12,113 4,920 1,870 2,759 5,323 9,929 1,248 5,244 295 1,883 994 3,288
Filing Rate (per 1000 students) 56.77 46.99 39.76 39.48 32.26 29.79 29.44 28.91 28.37 27.08 25.41 25.22 25.01 23.58 23.53 22.83 22.17 22.16 21.63 21.55 20.34 20.18 20.12 20.07
*Sources: Total petitions from annual report by each school district to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. These petitions include only the school districts that reported filings to OSPI for cost reimbursement purposes. Enrollment data from October 1995 K-12 Headcount (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction).
NEXT STEPS: This fall, the Institute will initiate a study of the effectiveness of the petition process in reducing unexcused absences, focusing on a limited number of schools with active filing rates and good databases. The final report, due January 1998, will 1. follow truant students and evaluate which measures had the greatest effect on
improving attendance; 2. evaluate the costs incurred in the petition filing process; and 3. describe whether actual truancy rates were changed in response to the petition process. (For more information, contact Edie Harding or Mason Burley at the Institute for Public Policy: (360) 866-6000 ext. 6380) 6
APPENDIX: Washington State School Districts - Total Petitions Reported to OSPI for Reimbursement, 1995-96 School Year*
District Aberdeen Adna Anacortes Arlington Auburn Battle Ground Bellevue Bellingham Bethel Bremerton Brewster Bridgeport Burlington Edison Camas Castle Rock Central Kitsap Centralia Chehalis Cheney Chewelah Chimacum Clarkston Cle Elum-Roslyn Clover Park Columbia (Walla) Colville Concrete Coupeville Curlew Cusick East Valley (Spok East Valley (Yak) Eastmont Eatonville Edmonds Ellensburg Enumclaw Ephrata Everett Evergreen (Clark) Federal Way Ferndale Fife Finley Franklin Pierce
*
Petitions 21 4 39 12 303 91 25 69 9 91 27 2 66 20 5 101 33 4 1 17 25 3 5 4 7 6 11 6 1 1 2 15 52 3 238 6 1 7 88 288 168 18 12 9 35
Allocation 4060.83 773.49 7541.55 2320.48 58592.02 17596.94 4834.33 13342.74 1740.36 17596.94 5,221.07 386.75 12762.62 3867.46 966.87 19,530.67 6381.31 773.49 193.37 3287.34 4834.33 580.12 966.87 773.49 1353.61 1160.24 2127.1 1160.24 193.37 193.37 386.75 2900.6 10055.4 580.12 46022.77 1160.24 193.31 1353.61 17016.82 55691.42 32486.66 3480.71 2320.48 1740.36 6768.06
Enrollment
Filing Rate (per 1000 students)
4,230 620 2,978 4,143 12,113 10,303 15,391 10,090 14,326 6,033 934 735 3,288 2,962 1,389 13,134 3,480 2,958 3,627 1,270 1,498 3,077 1,066 13,692 922 2,634 912 1,183 359 380 4,743 2,232 4,530 1,972 20,868 2,796 5,044 2,328 17,136 17,596 20,579 4,482 2,589 1,221 6,655
4.96 6.45 13.10 2.90 25.01 8.83 1.62 6.84 0.63 15.08 28.91 2.72 20.07 6.75 3.60 7.69 9.48 1.35 0.28 13.39 16.69 0.97 4.69 0.29 7.59 2.28 12.06 5.07 2.79 2.63 0.42 6.72 11.48 1.52 11.41 2.15 0.20 3.01 5.14 16.37 8.16 4.02 4.63 7.37 5.26
School districts that filed but did not request reimbursement assistance are not reflected in this list. 7
APPENDIX: Washington State School Districts - Total Petitions Reported to OSPI for Reimbursement, 1995-96 School Year*
District Grand Coulee Dam Grandview Granger Highline Hoquiam Index Issaquah Kelso Kennewick Kent Kittitas La Conner Lacenter Lake Chelan Lake Stevens Lake Washington Lakewood Liberty Longview Lyle Lynden Mabton Mary M Knight Marysville Mead Medical Lake Methow Valley Monroe Moses Lake Mount Pleasant Mt Vernon Mukilteo Napavine Naselle Grays Riv Nespelem Nooksack Valley North Kitsap North Mason North Thurston Northshore Oak Harbor Ocean Beach Ocosta Olympia Omak
*
8
Petitions 29 7 27 147 9 1 23 113 199 140 1 13 3 15 14 61 2 1 194 3 6 3 2 139 9 4 3 75 165 1 151 160 1 1 13 4 71 69 91 21 35 14 5 26 100
Allocation 5607.82 1353.61 5221.07 28425.83 1740.36 193.37 4447.58 21851.15 38481.23 27072.22 193.37 2513.85 580.12 2900.6 2707.22 11795.75 386.75 193.37 37514.36 580.12 1160.24 580.12 386.75 26878.85 1740.36 773.49 580.12 14502.98 31906.55 193.37 29199.32 30939.68 193.37 193.37 2,513.85 773.49 13729.48 13342.74 17596.94 4060.83 6768.06 2707.22 966.87 5027.7 19337.3
Enrollment
Filing Rate (per 1000 students)
985 2,828 1,248 18,209 2,459 31 11,464 5,244 12,635 24,492 577 748 1,220 1,494 5,286 24,332 1,986 693 7,692 435 2,581 960 216 9,947 7,727 2,431 812 4,838 6,092 59 5,069 12,191 676 478 229 1,815 6,890 2,432 13,150 19,226 6,372 1,419 1,046 8,632 2,515
29.44 2.48 21.63 8.07 3.66 32.26 2.01 21.55 15.75 5.72 1.73 17.38 2.46 10.04 2.65 2.51 1.01 1.44 25.22 6.90 2.32 3.13 9.26 13.97 1.16 1.65 3.69 15.50 27.08 16.95 29.79 13.12 1.48 2.09 56.77 2.20 10.30 28.37 6.92 1.09 5.49 9.87 4.78 3.01 39.76
School districts that filed but did not request reimbursement assistance are not reflected in this list.
APPENDIX: Washington State School Districts - Total Petitions Reported to OSPI for Reimbursement, 1995-96 School Year*
District Onalaska Oroville Orting Pasco Pe Ell Peninsula Pioneer Pomeroy Port Angeles Port Townsend Prosser Pullman Puyallup Quilcene Quillayute Valley Rainier Renton Richland Ridgefield Ritzville Riverview Rochester Rosalia San Juan Seattle Sedro Woolley Selah Sequim Shelton Shoreline Snohomish Snoqualmie Valley Soap Lake South Bend South Central South Kitsap Southside Spokane Stanwood Steilacoom Hist. Stevenson-Carson Sultan Sumner Sunnyside
*
Petitions 3 11 3 6 4 7 15 2 118 44 63 13 54 6 15 4 116 26 4 7 30 16 3 3 654 37 22 34 63 220 76 6 3 7 38 61 2 366 11 7 5 38 14 116
Allocation 580.12 2,127.10 580.12 1160.24 773.49 1.353 2900.6 386.75 22818.01 8508.41 12182.5 2513.85 10442.14 1160.24 2900.6 773.49 22431.27 5027.7 773.49 1353.61 5801.19 3093.97 580.12 580.12 126465.94 7,154.80 4254.21 6574.68 12,182.50 42542.06 14696.35 1160.24 580.12 1353.61 7348.17 11,795.75 386.75 70774.52 2127.1 1353.61 966.87 7348.17 2707.22 22431.27
Enrollment
Filing Rate (per 1000 students)
928 962 1,522 7,882 306 9,331 861 454 5,323 1,870 2,759 2,207 17,304 295 1,535 846 12,173 8,762 1,607 462 2,757 1,967 307 959 46,757 3,932 3,694 2,828 4,124 9,929 8,352 4,111 492 524 2,163 11,635 226 32,341 4,138 1,647 1,228 1,883 7,138 4,920
3.23 11.43 1.97 0.76 13.07 0.75 17.42 4.41 22.17 23.53 22.83 5.89 3.12 20.34 9.77 4.73 9.53 2.97 2.49 15.15 10.88 8.13 9.77 3.13 13.99 9.41 5.96 12.02 15.28 22.16 9.10 1.46 6.10 13.36 17.57 5.24 8.85 11.32 2.66 4.25 4.07 20.18 1.96 23.58
School districts that filed but did not request reimbursement assistance are not reflected in this list. 9
APPENDIX: Washington State School Districts - Total Petitions Reported to OSPI for Reimbursement, 1995-96 School Year*
District Tacoma Tahoma Tenino Tonasket Toppenish Tumwater Union Gap University Place Vancouver Vashon Island Wahkiakum Wahluke Walla Walla Wapato Washougal Waterville Wenatchee West Valley (Spok West Valley (Yak) White Pass White River White Salmon Winlock Wishkah Valley Wishram Yakima Yelm Zillah
*
Petitions 86 19 2 10 53 28 6 9 23 9 2 10 16 161 66 4 73 9 4 20 7 20 13 4 1 546 79 2
Allocation 16630.08 3674.09 386.75 1933.73 10248.77 5414.44 1160.24 1740.36 4447.58 1740.36 386.75 1933.73 3093.97 31133.05 12762.62 773.49 14116.23 1740.36 773.49 3,867.46 1353.61 3,867.46 2513.85 773.49 193.37 105581.66 15276.47 386.75
Enrollment
Filing Rate (per 1000 students)
31,596 5,100 1,493 1,244 3,422 6,242 551 5,070 19,910 1,666 576 1,092 6,894 3,426 2,597 443 6,810 4,508 3,524 994 3,524 1,369 796 237 79 13,829 4,172 1,222
2.72 3.73 1.34 8.04 15.49 4.49 10.89 1.78 1.16 5.40 3.47 9.16 2.32 46.99 25.41 9.03 10.72 2.00 1.14 20.12 1.99 14.61 16.33 16.88 12.66 39.48 18.94 1.64
School districts that filed but did not request reimbursement assistance are not reflected in this list.
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