http://blogs.e-rockford.com/viewpointsboard/2008/04/08/the-culture-of-poverty-food-for-thought/ The Community Viewpoints Board advises the Register Star on the Editorial Agenda and on topics of the day. They are conservatives, liberals and independent. Some are retired. Others are doctors, teachers, pastors, social workers and marketing specialists. Several members of the board agreed to blog on rrstar.com. They’ll share their views here on local issues. Their thoughts – as well as the opinions of other board members – also will appear with other opinion content online and in the newspaper in the Opinions section. Fri, 29 Aug 2008 23:22:38 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=wordpress-mu-1.2.4 http://blogs.e-rockford.com/viewpointsboard/2008/04/08/the-culture-of-poverty-food-for-thought/#comment-43 cathy Fri, 18 Apr 2008 03:02:49 +0000 http://blogs.e-rockford.com/viewpointsboard/2008/04/08/the-culture-of-poverty-food-for-thought/#comment-43 I agree that only writing tickets will not do the job. But the point of citing truants from the beginning and making referrals to the system is to provide for early intervention and provide an immediate consequence for negative behavior. Experience in the truancy court has shown already that some parents were totally unaware until their kids are ticketed that they have been truant. If parents become more actively engaged in the process, attendance improves. Yes, there are parents that don't follow through, but that is not the case with all of the parents of truant students. The point of the ticketing is not to ticket; it is to get students into the system with truancy intervention specialists to help with homework, bullying, substance abuse at home, or whatever the situation is. And then there are parents who are totally overwhelmed and need help, and the aim of the program is to provide assistance to them and their child. The truancy problem is not one group's alone, it is a community problem, and it needs schools, parents, government, police, and the court system to work together toward a solution. That is what the truancy intervention program was designed for, and if implemented properly and as agreed upon, it will make a difference. I agree that only writing tickets will not do the job. But the point of citing truants from the beginning and making referrals to the system is to provide for early intervention and provide an immediate consequence for negative behavior. Experience in the truancy court has shown already that some parents were totally unaware until their kids are ticketed that they have been truant. If parents become more actively engaged in the process, attendance improves. Yes, there are parents that don’t follow through, but that is not the case with all of the parents of truant students. The point of the ticketing is not to ticket; it is to get students into the system with truancy intervention specialists to help with homework, bullying, substance abuse at home, or whatever the situation is. And then there are parents who are totally overwhelmed and need help, and the aim of the program is to provide assistance to them and their child. The truancy problem is not one group’s alone, it is a community problem, and it needs schools, parents, government, police, and the court system to work together toward a solution. That is what the truancy intervention program was designed for, and if implemented properly and as agreed upon, it will make a difference.

]]> http://blogs.e-rockford.com/viewpointsboard/2008/04/08/the-culture-of-poverty-food-for-thought/#comment-35 hokumboy Sun, 13 Apr 2008 19:18:20 +0000 http://blogs.e-rockford.com/viewpointsboard/2008/04/08/the-culture-of-poverty-food-for-thought/#comment-35 People are living in this city without affordable health care and Swedes wants to build a million dollar vanity museum? Remember that next time you get your bill from the "trust the best" folks. Have they no shame at all? People are living in this city without affordable health care and Swedes wants to build a million dollar vanity museum? Remember that next time you get your bill from the “trust the best” folks. Have they no shame at all?

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