The Henryetta school board is going to be working with city police to develop a program to deal with students skipping out on school.
Monday night, the school board voted to develop a program that would include placing a police officer at the school during class hours to find truants.
Municipal judge Luke gather said he has been on the city bench for 11 years and has found, “the last five challenging.” Gather said students coming into his court, “are far more brazen than ever before.”
He pointed out the demographics of Henryetta is changing, “but not always in the best.” He told the board the town has a higher maintained level of low income housing, motels retrofitted for temporary housing and a transient population. Gaither said that is due in part to a lower cost of living and more easily available social services.
One of the leading indicators of criminal activity is truancy he explained. ”These are habitual problems. The students have zero opportunities at home since the parents are not involved for the long game. We have to get to the parents.”
Gather told the board staffing and budget problems make the Department of Human Services and District Attorney’s office unavailable.
“There is a solution. Truancy court would cut down truancy and help manage high maintenance students. We can help the family with life skills.”
That would include the school paying half the cost of a police officer to be at the school during class hours. It would amount to between $20,000 and $25,000 a year.
“The police are excited about this.” he said he has talked with police chief Steve Norman. The officer would work traffic issues in the morning then be around the school during the day. “If there was an emergency, he would leave the school.”
He also expected the officer to serve as a role model for many of the students.
The truancy court would offer alternative forms of punishments other than expulsion. Gather said the school ultimately suffers when a student is expelled because of a loss of state funding for that student.
That alternative punishment could include community service or even placement in a special punishment room with other students.
In 2002 the school had a similar program where an officer was present and worked a list of missing students each morning.
The board approved the project development and will revisit it at a later time.