Truancy Proposal Merits High Praise, Not Burial
* Your April 30 editorial “Enforcement Key to Truancy Measure” is insulting to City Council members and the voters who elected them.
Council member Laura Chick is to be applauded for a well-thought-out plan to curb truancy. But it’s insulting to insinuate that elected officials might not “demand its proper enforcement.” Since when can ordinances be ignored or enforced selectively?
And why are race and ethnicity injected into this issue? A student off school grounds between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. without a legitimate reason such as a work or family emergency is, by definition, truant. This is true in Sylmar as well as Woodland Hills.
This courageous legislation is to be praised, not criticized; it warrants implementation, not burial. Keeping kids in school is a goal worthy of immediate attention. If the police, the courts and the schools are united to solve this problem, what (or who) is the problem?
ELLEN BAGELMAN
Van Nuys
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