DECATUR, Ala. — At the Morgan County Courthouse on Friday, District Attorney Scott Anderson announced the formation of a new program headed up by his office. Along with 23 local agencies including Decatur City Schools, probation office, and mental health representatives, the program is aimed at lowering truancy and juvenile delinquency.
"On its surface, it's a crime prevention program," said Anderson. "But it's a whole lot more than that."
Dubbed the Helping Families Initiative, or HFI, the goal is to discourage at-risk youth from crime and encourage them to grow and learn.
"If we can intersect with that child and take that child off the bad path and put them on the good path, then this program has paid for itself hundreds of times over," Anderson said.
The U.S. Department of Justice says that "truancy is a stepping stone to delinquent and criminal activity. To that end, the D.A.'s office is working closely with Decatur City Schools, which will notify Anderson's team if any student reaches three unexcused absences.
From there, Anderson explained, the parents are asked to intervene and help get the child back on the right path.
"When we get that information, we're going to write a letter," he said. "It's going to be a friendly letter from the D.A. to that child's parent or guardian. We're going to tell them we've noticed that your child has three unexcused absences and we we want you to address the issue. "
Behavioral problems will be addressed in a more complex way. Children who are referred by the school district for misbehavior will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. This could be via an in-person or virtual meeting.
For more serious cases, a home study will be arranged. A worker will gather information about the child's home environment, which will be presented to the inter-agency team for analysis.
That team will work towards addressing the child's unique issues and needs, and connecting them with helpful resources. "It has the potential to not only impact that child, but their families as well," said Anderson.
HFI has the potential to decrease suspensions, juvenile arrests, dropout rates, and possibly even substance abuse rates. In turn, leaders hope the program will help students' ability to learn.
Anderson says after they see how the program works in the Decatur school system, they will look to expand the initiative to Hartselle City and Morgan County districts.