New State Law Adds Mental Health Rep on Truancy Boards

Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday signed a bill from Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla, D-Concord, addressed at policies on truant students.

 The bill requires the addition of a mental health representative on School Attendance Review Boards that work with truants. Now, the SARBs have experts, including social workers, teachers and law enforcement, but no mental health representative.

 The following is the text of a news release from Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla:

 Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill today by Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla (D-Concord) which will require adding a mental health representative to the School Attendance Review Boards (SARBs) to work with students who are truant from school. Currently, the SARB is composed of many experts (law enforcement, teachers, social workers, etc.) but no mental health representative to identify appropriate services to help students stay in school.

 Beginning January 2012, the new law requires that SARBs are staffed with essential experts to assist truant students and their parents or guardians to solve school attendance or behavior problems through available school and community resources. 

 School attendance is compulsory in California for children ages 6 to 18.  The students who violate compulsory education laws by having a pattern of unexcused absences are truant.  As an early warning system for truancy and behavior issues, SARBs were established on statewide, county and local levels to assist families on how to improve their student’s attendance.

 Schools, through SARBs, seek to understand the factors or barriers preventing students from attending school – such as lack of health care, poor transportation, fears of community violence, bullying by other children, boredom with the curriculum or lack of safety in the classroom.  SARBs can use this information to determine how to proceed, especially by working with families and in partnership with community agencies that offer relevant resource. Left without intervention, truancy can cause costly, long-term problems for students, schools and our community.

 “This bill provides us the much needed opportunity to ensure that truant students with mental health needs are not lost in the shuffle. By adding the mental health representative to these boards we will have an opportunity to address truancy with the greatest level of insight and expertise to help get students back in the classroom,” said Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla.