ATLANTA — Fulton County leaders and the Atlanta Public Schools are celebrating the success of a program aimed at keeping kids in school with the help of their parents to combat educational neglect, also known as truancy.
At least nine parents received a certificate on Tuesday for successfully completing the Supporting Education Empowerment and Development Success program, also known as SEEDS.
"We're working with our parents to help them understand the importance of getting their kids to school. By getting to school and getting to school on time. That is a life skill because you have to show up every day at your job," said Atlanta Public Schools Interim Superintendent Dr. Danielle Battle.
The program, which is in partnership with University 4 Parents and the Fulton County Solictor-General Keith Gammage, runs 10 weeks through the APS system.
According to Gammage, when a child in Georgia is under 16 and has more than five or more unexcused absences, it is considered education neglect. It could be punishable by a misdemeanor charge and up to 12 months in jail.
Gammage said the program acts as an alternative diversion program instead of prosecuting parents for their child missing school.
"We work with those parents and help them find job skills to have improved opportunities for better housing. Even for some of them, it was as simple as they didn't feel that the kids had the appropriate clothes to wear to school. Others, it was transportation, even with our great bus system," the Solictor-General said. "In this initiative, we're all working together to give parents and students extra support, wrap our hearts and heads around them, and move them toward better results, not just for the children, but for the parents in Georgia."
With APS' graduation rate at 86%, officials want to work to regularly enroll as many students as possible in the classroom.
"Our parents are really excited about completing this program, for themselves as well as their students and their children. I think parents also realize that when they're helping their students, they're also helping themselves, and they are building a stronger family," said Dr. Battle.
Parents who completed the program expressed their excitement on Tuesday at the graduation ceremony.
"It's a great experience as a parent; we undid certain cycles that we were used to," said parent Quonshia Laney. "Every lesson is helping our children with becoming more attentive. We found new ways to integrate it, like activities for them. So, with those new activities, we're teaching them other ways to learn and be creative. We're building character as well."
Gammage added that they hope the program can serve as a blueprint on how to deal with education neglect throughout the country.