At a March press conference, Administrative Judge Paul P. Panepinto announced the establishment of Project S.T.A.R.T. (Stop Truancy and Recommended Treatment). This joint initiative between the Family Court and School District is designed to target the truancy problem in our city through early assessment and intervention. The unique aspect of the project is that the court is conducting truancy hearings in the school rather than at 1801 Vine Street where all truancy cases were heard previously. Children, parents, schools, and the community will all benefit.

In the past, Family Court has adjudicated truancy cases against parents whose children had missed 50 or more days from school in a given year. Typically, the older children at these hearings had experienced truancy problems for years. At this stage, it becomes more difficult to get the parents and child "back on track." It became clear that the court should intervene sooner to capture children at a younger age--before the truancy became a problem.

Since March, four cluster courts -- located in Kensington and Northeast, South, and West Philadelphia -- have heard close to one thousand cases. The hearings are conducted by special truancy Masters (experienced attorneys in the field) in a court-like setting in the schools.

The cases are initiated by School District personnel who identify parents whose children have been absent 25 or more days. A private complaint is filed against the child's parent or guardian who is subpoenaed to appear, with the child, in the cluster court.

The presiding Master, working with school representatives and social workers from the Department of Human Services, assesses the problem causing the truancy and develops an action plan to address the problem, such as counseling, tutoring, parent effectiveness training, etc. Typically, truancy is not a problem in itself, but rather a symptom of one or more underlying problems (health problems; language problems; economic problems such as lack of funds for transportation, clothes, or glasses; family problems such as parental neglect or drug or alcohol abuse; or personal problems such as feelings of low self esteem).

Once the action plan is developed, parents and children are ordered to comply. Failure to do so may result in removal of the child from the home for residential schooling and/or fines or incarceration of the parent.

Approximately 30,000 children are absent from school a day in Philadelphia. Truancy has a dramatic practical and monetary impact on society. Dropouts are more likely to be unemployed or earning minimum wage salaries. Many truants later become known to the delinquent or criminal courts. While Project S.T.A.R.T. will not solve every truancy case, it has experienced a high compliance rate so far and is an excellent first step toward future expansion.

For further information about the project, contact Brian Dillon, Assistant Project Coordinator, at 686-4296.