Truancy program kicks off

District Attorney Andrea Reeb on Tuesday announced the kickoff of the Abolish Chronic Truancy program (A.C.T.)

A.C.T. is a proactive program created by the district attorney’s office, designed to combat student dropout rates and increase school attendance in Curry and Roosevelt Counties, according to a press release from Reeb.

Every school year, members of the DA’s office speak in schools across both counties and explain to students the correlation between dropping out of school and ending up in a life of crime, the release said.

According to the release, they remind students that a majority of New Mexico prison inmates are high-school dropouts. Students are encouraged to commit to attending school every day.

Students with perfect school attendance will be entered into a grand prize drawing at the end of the school year. Winners receive an all-expense paid trip to Dallas, including airfare, hotel accommodations, tickets to Six-Flags and Hurricane Harbor, tickets to a Texas Rangers baseball game and $500.