SKIPPING SCHOOL MAY NOT SEEM LIKE A BIG DEAL, but truancy is listed as one of the major problems facing public schools through the country. In fact, there is a high correlation between truancy and the school drop-out rate.

THE BEST PLACE FOR A SCHOOL-AGED CHILD IS SCHOOL

WHEN STUDENTS ARE SKIPPING SCHOOL there are more chances for them to become victims or perpetrators of crime. Within the last year, a large percentage of juvenile arrests in Catawba County occured between the hours of 8am and 4pm, time that should be spent in the classroom. Although being truant may not seem like a crime in and of itself, it is a violation of North Carolina law for a juvenile of at least 6 and less than 16 years of age to be absent from school without a lawful excuse.

TNT SNUFFS OUT A POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE SITUATION.

TNT:  TOLERATE NO TRUANCY is a truancy prevention program created by law enforcement officials and the Catawba County Schools. Police officers will respond to information received from citizens who report truant students by calling the TNT HOTLINE.

When police get a report or see a suspected truancy the officer will:

• Question the student about why he/she is absent from school
• Transport the student to his/her home, school or the nearest dropoff point
• Work with the Dropout Prevention Case Manager to fill out paperwork and contact the parents and get the student returned to his/her home school. The student will also be issued a truancy report form. After three reported truancies the student will be referred to court.

IT TAKES A WHOLE COMMUNITY TO RAISE A CHILD

THERE IS A PROVERB WHICH SAYS, "It tales a whole village to raise a child." Parents school staff, law enforcement officials and the judicial system will work together on TNT but it will take everyone to make the program sucessful. Information from neighborhood residents, merchants, and other citizens is a critical element.

THE TNT HOTLINE, 465-3TNT, will be manned from 8 AM till 3 PM to take calls from citizens who suspect a Catawba County student is truant.

TNT is sponsored by the Catawba County Sheriff's Office, and the Police Departments of Hickory, Newton, Maiden, Conover, Claremont, Catawba, Longview, and the Juvenile Court.

TNT HOTLINE: 465-3TNT