The current state of truancy reduction programs and opportunities for enhancement in Los Angeles County

• Mixed methods case study identified opportunities to enhance system functioning.
• Many interconnected players are working to address truancy in Los Angeles County.
• Study showed need to increase school-based efforts and coordinate across partners.
• Study showed need to address students' and families' physical and mental health needs.
• Experts recommend expansion of data collection and evidence-based programs.

School truancy, defined as any intentional unauthorized or illegal absence from school, influences, and is influenced by, multiple academic, health, and social factors. This project sought to describe how truancy-reduction systems are operating in Los Angeles County and identify the highest priority policy and program options to effectively address truancy. The Department of Public Health convened an expert panel and collected data through literature review, key informant interviews, focus groups, and surveys. Results describe the interconnected players that are working to address truancy. Recommendations focus on increasing school-based efforts, identifying innovative ways to address students' and families' physical and mental health needs, enhancing coordination across partners and elevating their commitment, expanding evidence-based programs, and enhancing data collection efforts to better identify additional effective strategies. Other jurisdictions can build off our prioritization framework to describe the current state of their systems and identify promising programs to augment system functioning.