Truancy Rates as High as 75% Plague Some IB Schools, State Reveals

Truancy rates in Imperial Beach schools were about three times the San Diego County average in 2011-2012 as students with unexcused absences hit 75.7 percent at Bayside Elementary and 63.8 percent at Mar Vista High School, say new state figures.

But according to the state Department of Education, the Sweetwater Union High School District and South Bay Union School District had relatively few expulsions.

Mar Vista High had no expulsions, data show, and Mar Vista Middle—with many students from IB—had only two in 2011-2012.

The state education code defines a student as truant who has missed more than 30 minutes of instruction without a valid explanation three or more times in a school year.

Truancy has long been a problem in the Sweetwater schools, with the Los Angeles Times reporting in 1988 that the district was battling an almost 60 percent truancy rate among its total absences.

More than a decade ago, the San Diego County Grand Jury recommended steps that cities and school districts should take to reduce truancy rates.

In 2011-12, the Sweetwater district’s truancy rate was 46.6 percent, compared with a San Diego County rate of 22.2 percent and statewide rate of 28.5 percent, the state said.

Also posting high truancy rates in IB were Central Elementary (73.2 percent), Imperial Beach Charter School (67.3 percent) and Oneonta Elementary (59.2 percent).

Suspension rates were high as well, with 200 students suspended at Mar Vista for a 10.3 percent rate compared with the county and state rates of 4.1 percent and 5.7 percent, respectively.

In San Diego County—with 592 expulsions—the largest number was in San Diego Unified, with 202, followed by Escondido Union High (93), Vista Unified (68), Oceanside Unified (55), Carlsbad Unified (36), San Marcos Unified (35) and Poway Unified (31).

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced the data release April 19.

• List of reports for Sweetwater Union High School District
• List of reports for South Bay Union School District
• List of reports for San Diego County
• List of reports for California 

The data show a total of 366,629 students suspended and 9,553 students expelled among the more than 6 million public school students in California, a suspension rate of 5.7 percent, and an expulsion rate of 0.1 percent.

“Common sense tells us that we cannot teach students who are not in school,” Torlakson said. “I hope that parents, teachers, administrators, and students see this information as the starting point for discussions about how to find alternatives to suspension that sustain healthy learning environments while keeping as many students as possible in class.”

A review of the data indicates there are some differences in the rates at which some student groups are suspended, the state said.

For example, the data show African-American students are 6.5 percent of total enrollment, but make up 19 percent of suspensions. White students are 26 percent of total enrollment, but represent 20 percent of suspensions. Hispanic students are 52 percent of total enrollment, and 54 percent of suspensions.  

The Department of Education says it is working on several initiatives to address differences in rates by identifying positive alternatives to suspension and expulsion, as well as developing effective strategies to improve attendance as part of an overarching initiative to keep students in school.

“The department has partnered with several organizations to work on these initiatives, including The California Endowment, the California Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care, the Region IX Equity Assistance Center at WestEd, and Attendance Works,” said a news release.

The 2011-12 suspension and expulsion, as well as truancy reports, are available on the Department of Education’s DataQuest site.

The reports may be viewed by the state, county, district, and school level. Reports on the most serious federal offense are available as part of the persistently dangerous school reporting requirement under the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act.