Keeping Kids out of the Criminal Justice System

By Bailey Bach, 17th Circuit Court Intern and Grand Valley State University Student (Kent County)

Most people agree that education provides the foundation for a successful, independent adult life.  Many jobs require a high school diploma or a GED, leaving those who fail to finish school at a disadvantage.  However, many students today are unable to see the value of their education, and truancy has become a problem in school districts across the country.  Truancy can be associated with failure to finish school, substance abuse, and delinquency that may continue into adulthood.  This connection between truancy and delinquency has spurred many school districts to attempt to deter truancy and encourage school attendance.

In February of 2017, the 17th Circuit Court launched its “Truancy Court,” a pilot project addressing absenteeism in Kent County schools.  Truancy Court was formed by the Kent School-Justice Partnership (KS-JP), a group of local stakeholders with representatives from the 17th Circuit Court, Michigan Community Mental Health Services, Kent County Prosecutor’s Office, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, and Kent County Public Schools.  KS-JP, formed in 2013 at the request of Governor Snyder to reduce the school dropout rate, is chaired by Judge Kathleen Feeney, presiding judge of the 17th Circuit Court’s Family Division.  She is joined on the partnership by Family Division Judge Paul Denenfeld.

Judge Kathleen Feeney

Over the past four years, KS-JP has met monthly to gather information about truancy and absenteeism.  “Our first goal was to change the definition of truancy and chronic absenteeism in Kent County, as not all schools had the same definition,” said Judge Feeney.  “Now every public school district in Kent County agrees that truancy can be defined as 10 or more unexcused absences in a school year, and chronic absenteeism is defined as missing more than 10 percent of school days to that point in the school year.  These common definitions allow the court to treat truancy the same in each school district and to track the effectiveness of truancy programs.” 

Judge Feeney further commented, “School truancy and other barriers to education put our youth at a huge disadvantage as they grow into adults.  These disadvantages include losing out on employment, but can also be tied to higher instances of criminal behavior and even prison sentences.  Truancy Court aims to get students the services they need to overcome attendance barriers and return to school.”   

Mark Larson, Attendance Officer and Truancy Coordinator for the Kent Intermediate School District and member of the KC-JP, began looking for a model for battling truancy.  “We need surgical precision with who we charge and what we charge them with,” Larson said.  He found multiple truancy courts in the state that KS-JP could potentially use as models for their own truancy court.  

“The most promising was Ingham,” Larson said.  “We took Ingham County’s truancy court model and used that as a foundation for our program.”  

The Ingham County program was founded in 2001 by Judge Rick Garcia and Judge George Economy and has significantly reduced the number of truant students.  The program has also created the Ingham Academy, where suspended and expelled students can attend school rather than wander the streets when suspended.  The Academy is funded through a local millage and strong community support.

The Truancy Court program is debuting in two Wyoming school districts and expanding this year to several others.  Truancy Court brings truant and chronically absent students before a judge to discuss why they have been missing school and how to proceed.  

After appearing in court and pleading guilty to truancy charges, students are given 25 consecutive school days to improve their attendance, during which they are required to have no class absences.  If the student complies with these orders, the truancy charges will be dropped, and his or her record will be clean.  If a student does not comply with the order and cannot attend school for the required amount of time, he or she will be put on probation, which will include monitoring and school surveillance.

The program provides up to 20 attorneys working pro bono for the students, and will allow students and their families to access numerous community services such as the county’s mental health authority, Network180, and the 17th Circuit Court’s Crisis Intervention Program.  The founders of the program hope to expand to additional school districts in the future.

With this program, KS-JP hopes to keep students off the streets and out of the juvenile justice system. Much like the Ingham County Truancy Court, the Kent County Truancy Court pilot program aims to decrease the number of truant students in the area and raise awareness about the importance of school attendance.  

“School is their job.  We are building skills that will keep our kids out of the criminal justice system where over 50 percent of the people sitting in jail or prison have no high school diploma or GED,” Judge Feeney stated.  “We will do everything we can to reengage these students and help them become invested in their education and their future.”

Questions?  Contact the court at 616-632-5480.