Whenever I talk to the press, I feel nervous that they're going to
misquote me or take my words out of context. So in a nutshell, here's
what I really mean.
The current excessive absenteeism law has harmed many children and families.
Interactions with the justice system have been particularly harmful for
children suffering from mental and behavioral health issues
(depression, autism, etc.)
School districts throughout the state have reported thousands of
children to the county attorney unnecessarily. I don't know why. Some
day I'd like to get a straight answer from educators on what would
possess them to turn struggling kids over to law enforcement without
cause or remorse.
County attorneys have prosecuted children who
were not skipping school and were absent through no fault of their own,
including sick children with doctor's notes. I don't understand this
either. I'm not giving the county attorneys a pass; however, I do know
it's their job to prosecute and get convictions. I understand their
actions more than I understand the actions of the educators, who have
devoted their lives to helping children, yet have caused so much harm.
I am satisfied with the verbiage of Amendment 2164 and feel confident that positive changes will result when it becomes law.
The amendment, if implemented correctly, will resolve the problem of
children with absences due to physical and behavioral health being
turned over to the county attorney. I believe it will prevent thousands
of children from being thrown into the juvenile justice system.
There are children who need help overcoming barriers to attendance. AM
2164 is designed to offer that help rather than punish children who are
struggling.
I believe Sen. Brad Ashford is doing a good job of
explaining the problems with the current law and why changes need to be
made. I appreciate his willingness to advocate for those changes.
I am particularly grateful for Sen. Mark Christensen's work on this
issue. His advocacy for our families was behind the scenes and many
people will never know the extent of his contribution, but suffice it to
say he is a hero in my book.
Once the changes take effect,
parents will need to work collaboratively with their schools to ensure
the new law is implemented as intended. Parents elect their school
board members and pay the salaries of school employees, so parental
input into policies affecting their kids is crucial. It is the parents'
responsibility to work with their school districts respectfully to
achieve what is best for their children. That is, after all, what we
have been fighting for.
Brenda Vosik, Director
Nebraska Family Forum
It is the Mission of the Nebraska Family Forum (NFF) to promote education policies in our state that preserve and protect parental authority and the integrity of the family. In so doing, we will preserve the cooperative and respectful relationship between school authorities and parents, preserve a family-centered community, and provide a well-rounded education for our kids.
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Amendment 2164: A Fix to Nebraska's Excessive Absenteeism Law
Dear
NFF Members:
Over
the past three weeks, I have had the privilege of working with a committee
assembled specifically for the purpose of rewriting the excessive absenteeism
law. This committee consisted of school
administrators, social workers, State Department of Education personnel, a
county attorney and a defense attorney, a children’s advocacy group…and me,
representing you.
Our
committee spent about 15 hours talking, negotiating, and coming to agreement on
how we could prevent children with legitimate absences from being referred to
the county attorney, while still ensuring that children who are truly at risk
are able to get the help they need to overcome barriers to school attendance.
Below is the link to the verbiage that the committee agreed upon. The
amendment is 2164 to LB 464, and it will be debated on the floor very soon, possibly as early as Thursday, March 6.
http://nebraskalegislature.gov/FloorDocs/Current/PDF/AM/AM2164.pdf
If
this law is passed, it will provide safeguards and oversight to prevent schools
from using county attorneys as a first resort to enforce attendance policy, and
it will help put a stop to county attorneys filing charges on students with
legitimate absences. It puts a great
deal of responsibility on the schools to work with the families before
ever referring to the county attorney—a piece that has been missing for the
past four years.
These
are the key strengths of the new verbiage:
·
There
is no mandatory referral to the county attorney. The school is no longer required to refer your
child at 20 days of absence.
·
The
schools have six specific steps they must take before even considering referral
to law enforcement. Those steps must be
well documented.
·
The
cornerstone of those six steps is collaboration with the family. Parents and school administrators must agree
on a plan together when a student is struggling with attendance. All factors contributing to absenteeism must
be considered and addressed prior to referral to the county attorney. The county attorney is to be used rarely and only
as a last resort.
·
After
all steps are completed and documented, there is a minimum number of absences
(20) that must be reached before the school can even consider referral. Illnesses that make attendance impossible or
impracticable cannot be used in this 20 day tally.
·
An
affirmative defense clause has been added.
The amendment specifically states that if the school does not complete
and document every step required in the statute, it is a defense to prosecution
of truancy or neglect charges. In other
words, if the school doesn’t do their job, the county attorney has no case.
·
The
Council on Student Attendance is created.
This council will review attendance policies and practices of every
Nebraska school district and make recommendations for changes. There will be oversight of school districts
who have unreasonable policies and/or are making inappropriate referrals to the
county attorney.
Parents,
these are very positive changes! With
correct implementation, this amendment should eliminate thousands of children
being referred to the juvenile justice system.
Education of parents, schools, county attorneys, and defense attorneys
will be the key to making this work the way it’s supposed to.
The
NFF is almost 740 strong this morning, and growing every day. We are not going anywhere. Our group will continue to be vigilant as
this law is passed and implemented, and we will not stop pointing out when the
law is being misused and our children are being harmed. However, I believe a great deal of that harm
will be alleviated if this amendment passes.
Thanks
to all of you brave families for speaking up in defense of our children over
the past four years. WE ARE NOT DONE
YET. I will be posting an urgent call to action on the Facebook page and blog
very shortly, asking for you to immediately CALL AND E-MAIL STATE
SENATORS and ask them to vote for this amendment. Please help make one
last push to get this law passed, for the sake of our children.
Brenda Vosik, Director
Nebraska Family Forum
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