Thread: Solution sought for truancy among Hispanic students

Solution sought for truancy among Hispanic students
About 100 people attend workshop organized by Latino Christian Ministers' Network
By ELISABETH HULETTE, Staff Writer
Published August 21, 2008
School and police officials are concerned a growing truancy problem among some Hispanic students at Annapolis High is leading to crime and gang activity and could land immigrant parents in deportation hearings.

About 40 to 45 Hispanic students regularly leave during the school day to go to the mall, the movies and even unsupervised parties, local officials said at an Annapolis workshop last night. That's increased over the past few years from a group of 10 who frequently skipped school.

"The problem continues, and it's growing," Peggy Wheeler, head of the English language department at Annapolis High, said in Spanish to the group gathered at the workshop. "The promise of this country is there's opportunities for students, but they can't get them if they're not in school."

Last night's workshop held at Annapolis Area Christian School was organized by the Latino Christian Ministers' Network of Anne Arundel County to raise awareness of the problem and discuss solutions. It was held in Spanish, with an English translation broadcast to headsets for non-Spanish-speakers. About 100 people attended.

The truancy problem isn't unique to Annapolis. Glen Burnie High School also has truancy problems with Hispanic students, but the north county school has a smaller Hispanic population than Annapolis, said Leigh Fleckenstein, a Glen Burnie English-language teacher.

For immigrant students, truancy can be a way to rebel against parents who left them in their home countries for a time when they moved to America, she said.

Hispanic students also skip because they're looking for a social outlet, Ms. Wheeler said. Culturally, Hispanic families encourage their children to work after school and tend to keep their children - espe-cially girls - at home. That leaves little time for socializing.

"They just want to have fun," Ms. Wheeler said.

But cutting class can keep students from graduating, and beyond that it can head students and their families toward legal trouble. By law, all children in Maryland have to attend school regularly between ages 5 and 16, and if they fail to show, they can be referred to Project Attend, a truancy program at the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services.

If that program doesn't work, their parents could end up in district court on misdemeanor charges. That's especially troublesome for parents who are legal residents on temporary protected status, because two misdemeanor charges can lead to deportation hearings, said Marysabel Rodriguez-Nanney, an immigration attorney in Annapolis.
Tema Encarnacion, international student registrar for county schools, said she's seen that situation play out at least once already at Annapolis High.

Trouble also brews at the parties, where students engage in drinking, sex and gang recruitment, said Officer Ronald Goggins, the school resource officer at Annapolis Middle School. Police have also seen increases in car theft and shoplifting crimes because of truancy, he said.

Rene Escobar, 17, who will be a senior this year at Annapolis High, said some Hispanic students don't see a reason to attend school - they just don't plan to go to college.

Yosy Velasquez, 16, a sophomore at Annapolis High, said students spread the word out about parties through messages written on bathroom walls, through the social networking Web site MySpace and by congregating behind the pool and in the locker room. Students sneak out by pretending they're going to class in the portable classrooms, and then getting in their cars instead.

Someone always gets hurt, she said. She said she's heard stories about students shooting guns and fighting at the parties.

"They think school's boring," Yosy said. "They do it because their friends pressure them. They think, 'I'm going to be in school bored while my friends are having fun.' "

Principal Donald Lilley said officials at Annapolis High need to work closer with the families and are working toward a solution to the truancy problem. Ms. Fleckenstein said Glen Burnie is trying to motivate students by offering dance and soccer clubs. Both urged parents to keep in touch with their child's school and tell officials if their phone number or address changes. That way, the school can contact them if their child is missing from class.

Officer Goggins said parents should call 911 if they know students are throwing a party during school hours so police can bring those students back to school.

"For us, it's not anything easy to deal with," Mercedes Benitez, an Annapolis parent, said last night. "Our children don't realize what they're missing when they skip school."



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http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bi ... _21-06/SCH

So deport them and their families!
Take away their so-called citizenship too, if they are JUST anchor-babies.
Problem solved! Next issue..

Great point, WorriedAmerican. My sentiments exactly.

Hispanic families encourage their children to work after school and tend to keep their children - espe-cially girls - at home.

That's because the age of consentual sex is 12 in Mexico!!! I'd keep my girls home too!

"They just want to have fun," Ms. Wheeler said.

GANGS are so much fun!

If that program doesn't work, their parents could end up in district court on misdemeanor charges. That's especially troublesome for parents who are legal residents on temporary protected status, because two misdemeanor charges can lead to deportation hearings.

Legal residents on temporary protected status???

Trouble also brews at the parties, where students engage in drinking, sex and gang recruitment, said Officer Ronald Goggins.

How wonderful to come to America because we offer oppurtunities you can't get at home.
I think you can have more "fun" back home.

Rene Escobar, 17, who will be a senior this year at Annapolis High, said some Hispanic students don't see a reason to attend school - they just don't plan to go to college.

So they sent their brightest people huh?

Principal Donald Lilley said officials at Annapolis High need to work closer with the families and are working toward a solution to the truancy problem.

That'll get you killed!

"Our children don't realize what they're missing when they skip school."

Your child is probably a gangbanger mame'

I'd like to say, stress to the parents the importance of school and that it's law and not an option......but who cares about laws? Let em find out the hard way. I know here they bribe them with pizza parties and all that....My dad would knock the beejeebers out of ya....no bribes or worrying about damaged psyches here. That's your job as a kid and by God you're going. No special stickers, no pizza parties or "fun Fridays"...my parents didn't see it as an option or something up for debate, or a vote......you're a darned kid and you do what I say.

I know in Florida they started putting the parents in jail.....and in some schools if your kid was a problem....you had to go to school with them or they were taken to juvie.

This would make a good study for LULAC. It would be interesting to see where this set of Hispanics ends up say 10 years from now.

Rene Escobar, 17, who will be a senior this year at Annapolis High, said some Hispanic students don't see a reason to attend school - they just don't plan to go to college.

So what....it (HS diploma or GED) usd to be a minimum requirement to work at any decent job above part time high school work.

This would make a good study for LULAC. It would be interesting to see where this set of Hispanics ends up.

It's a good study all around to support decent wages. It's a darn shame when you can make more money doing something illegal and the penalty isn't a big to do, so the risk far outweighs the penalty. There's really not much to support to do better when doing wrong pays off so well.

Rene Escobar, 17, who will be a senior this year at Annapolis High, said some Hispanic students don't see a reason to attend school - they just don't plan to go to college.


Yosy Velasquez, 16, a sophomore at Annapolis High, said students spread the word out about parties through messages written on bathroom walls, through the social networking Web site MySpace and by congregating behind the pool and in the locker room. Students sneak out by pretending they're going to class in the portable classrooms, and then getting in their cars instead.

Someone always gets hurt, she said. She said she's heard stories about students shooting guns and fighting at the parties.

"They think school's boring," Yosy said. "They do it because their friends pressure them. They think, 'I'm going to be in school bored while my friends are having fun.' "

They do it because their parents don't DEMAND they go to school. They think they will get a hs diploma and collect welfare for the rest of their lives. It's called LAZINESS and stupidity!

"They think school's boring," Yosy said. "They do it because their friends pressure them. They think, 'I'm going to be in school bored while my friends are having fun.' "

And then later cry about how easy "whitey" has it.......got to pay the piper at one time or another.