Running Head: Welfare Should Be Cut For Truancy3

Essay One: Welfare Should Be Cut For TruancySara DavisBaker College

Michigan families with a child who regularly misses school could miss out on welfare cash assistance under a bill approved on March 26, 2015 by the state House of Representatives. Bill HB-4041 was introduced by Representative Al Pscholka, who has named the bill the parental responsibility act. The bill passed the Michigan senate on May, 26 2015 and now goes back to the House of Representatives for approval on technical changes before going to Governor Rick Snyder for final approval. If approved the new law would allow for the state to discontinue the Family Independence Program assistance if a child between ages 6 and 16 are chronically truant. Welfare should be reduced or cut for excessive truancy. The new law will reduce truancy rates, enforce parental accountability and responsibility, and create academic success and economic growth. In Michigan, truancy is defined by 10 or more unexcused absences per school year. During the 2011-2012 school year, there were 93,408 cases of truancy in Michigan schools as reported by the Michigan Department of Education (Espejo, 2015). The new law would reduce truancy rates for families that are dependent upon the states Family Independence program by enforcing school attendance. The Michigan Department of Human Services would be keeping track of children ages six to sixteen. The policy states that when a prospective recipient applies for cash assistance aid, they will now have to prove their 6-15 year old child is enrolled in school, and that the child has maintained acceptable attendance. The recipients of the Family Independence Program would have to prove their children attended school or force being cut from the program. Once approved the new policy would verify childrens attendance annually and on each childs birthday for ages 16, 17, and 18. These ages are when truancy rates tend to dramatically increase. If the family fails to meet the states standard, they will be forced to wait and prove that their child has attended school for 21 consecutive days, in order to regain their eligibility (Espejo, 2015). Threatening to take away state cash aid is expected to make parents more responsible. Parents of children that receive the states assistance with cash, would be forced to be held accountable for truant children. The bill is intended to motivate parents to get their kids to school. The family independence program is aimed to provide cash assistance to low income families with children. According to the Department of Human Services, temporary cash assistance is available to qualified pregnant women and low income families with minors, with eligible households receiving on average $463 per month from the state of Michigan. Families with children ages six to sixteen should be held responsible for their childrens education. Creating incentive to get children to school promotes parental accountability and positive educational influence in the childs life. Josette Buendia, Principal at Bennett Elementary school in Detroit, Michigan where during the 2010-2011 school year the attendance rate at Detroit Public Schools hit a disturbing low when it dipped under 75 percent for 10 days (Espejo, 2015), Buendia states that there needs to be a sense of accountability among students and parents for them to stay in school (Espej0, 2015). Children who are chronically truant is a warning sign that a child is in trouble and needs help if they are to keep moving forward in life ( Fischer, 2013). A young child does not get a choice if the parent chooses not to send them to school, the parents should be held liable for excessive absences. The welfare of a child and education are tied together. Senator Moynihan is pleased to see these two subjects come together welfare and education, because we are talking about the achievement of children and the performance of adults When the amount of truancy is being decreased, there will be an increase in academic success. Were going to have higher graduation rates because the most important thing with this also is that we want to end generational poverty and it starts by increasing our educational values. (Breslow, 2012). By reducing truancy rates the high school graduation rate will increase, and with gained education comes higher annual income. The average dropout can expect to earn an annual income of $20,241, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.Thats a full $10,386 less than the typical high school graduate, and $36,424 less than someone with a bachelors degree (Breslow, 2012). Ending the cycle of poverty is a large motivation behind this bill and it starts with getting students in the classroom learning and getting the education needed to end a cycle of poverty. Truant youths often come from low-income families. They are often victims of neglect and without the provision of tools for success, primarily educational, they are at great risk of exhibiting similar problems that their impoverished parents experienced. The poverty experienced by families of truant youth contributes to the problem (Fischer, 2013). Research has shown that, poverty is twice as powerful of a predictor of high school graduation rates, it stands to reason that those in poverty and receiving welfare assistance should be held accountable for their childrens school attendance. The bill is aimed at increasing education and ending poverty.The Family Independence program should be discontinued for families that have children with excessive truancy. This is an important bill that should be passed and made into law because it will effectively decrease truancy rates by forcing parents to be accountable. Parents are setting the example for their children and that example needs to be education. Low-income families rely on the assistance of the Family Independence program to make ends meet. This will force parents to take an active role in their childs education and get them to school. Decreasing truancy rates means higher levels of education and graduation rates that will in turn help our economy by creating less poverty stricken individuals. When a child is at school they have the opportunity to learn more and create academic success. Frequent absences interrupts the learning process and creates hurdles for the child to overcome in order to learn. Discontinuing welfare benefits to families with truant children will re-shape the foundation of our childrens future.

ReferencesBreslow, J. (2012, September 21). Retrieved May 31, 2015, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/education/dropout-nation/by-the-numbers-dropping-out-of-high-school/Espejo. (2015, January 9). Michigan Families With Truant Children Can Lose Cash Assistance Welfare Benefits Under New Policy - Metro Parent. Retrieved May 31, 2015, from http://www.metroparent.com/daily/education/school-issues/michigan-families-truant-children-can-lose-cash-assistance-welfare-benefits-new-policy/FISCHER, W. M. (2013). Conditional Welfare Grants to Address Truancy and Child Educational Neglect: United States' Experiments and Ecuador's Mandates.Journal Of Law & Education,42(2), 275-311.