Truancy refers to the accumulation of unexcused and unlawful absences at or above a state or school district defined threshold. Truancy policy has the ostensible goal of promoting student attendance and reducing unexcused absences. However, some common truancy responses that punish students and their families may exacerbate truancy and reinforce racial and ethnic educational inequality. Truancy policies must be interrogated to identify restorative strategies and practices that better support Black and Latinx students and their families. With this award, Weathers aims to explore the landscape of truancy policies across the US, assess the effects of truancy policy amendments in Pennsylvania on student outcomes, and examine the effect of truancy interventions on student outcomes in Philadelphia public schools. Weathers will develop expertise in critical quantitative methods and mixed-method designs through mentorship from Kamden Strunk, Professor of Educational Research Methodologies at Virginia Commonwealth University. Erica Turner, Associate Professor of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, will provide mentorship in critical qualitative methods.
Do institutional responses to truancy reduce racial inequality in truancy, habitual truancy, and related educational outcomes for Black and Latinx students?
