Crane Foundation Renews Support of Truancy Court Program
December 3, 2010
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
The Charles Crane Family Foundation has renewed its support of the University of Baltimore School of Law Center for Families, Children and the Courts' Truancy Court Program with a grant of $50,000. The foundation, the first organization to provide funding for the program when it began in 2005, has been a consistent supporter of the program's goal of providing therapeutic, non-punitive interventions for "soft truants"—students who have from five to 20 unexcused absences and/or tardies in the prior two marking periods but retain academic, social and emotional connections to their schools.
The Truancy Court Program addresses the root causes of truant behavior and links families to needed social services or other community-based supports. CFCC operates the program in 14 schools across Maryland, including eight in Baltimore City, two in Anne Arundel County, two in Baltimore County, and two in Montgomery County. Data show that typically, 55-65 percent of students graduate from the program, as measured by at least a 75 percent decrease in unexcused absences and/or tardies and improvements in academic performance and classroom behavior.
"We at CFCC are very gratified to receive this continuation of funding from the Crane Foundation, a consistent funder of our Truancy Court Program since its inception," said Barbara Babb, CFCC's director and associate professor at the School of Law.
The Truancy Court Program, which is strictly voluntary on the part of students and their families, consists of 10 weekly in-school meetings per session and capitalizes on the stature and authority of the volunteer judge. Participants at each meeting include a volunteer judge, a team of school representatives, a mentor, a University of Baltimore law student, a law school supervisor, the child, and his/her parent. Interventions include parenting classes, tutoring, training in basic skills, counseling and anger management. Early intervention that addresses the problems underlying truancy can prevent this behavior from leading to delinquency, crime and violence.
The Truancy Court Program is the result of an innovative partnership among the School of Law, the District and Circuit Courts for Baltimore City, and the Baltimore City Public Schools.
Past support from the Charles Crane Family Foundation allowed CFCC to introduce the program into more schools and increase its scope.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the School of Law, the Yale Gordon College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Public Affairs and the Merrick School of Business.