Chronic Absenteeism and School Refusal: Session 300 with Kristen McNeely

Kristen McNeely joins me for an informative discussion about the challenging topic of School Refusal and Chronic Absenteeism. If you are in any way connected to a school community, you've probably heard about this difficult and growing problem. As we discuss in this episode, school refusal is an ever-growing concern, and it manifests itself in numerous ways. Kristen is both a BCBA and a Licensed Marital and Family Therapist in California, and she spends nearly all of her time working with parents who have children who engage in school refusal. In this episode, we cover: The distinction between the terms Chronic Absenteeism and School Refusal. How School Refusal can be thought of as a continuum of attendance patterns. The role of anxiety in these response patterns. Assessing the function of School Refusal behaviors. Helping parents intervene with School Refusal. The importance of wrap around supports for severe cases. How School Refusal can turn into what's known as Failure to Launch. You're going to want to listen all the way through to the end because she closes the show not only some awesome advice for the newly minted, but a poignant personal story. Resources mentioned in this podcast: The School Avoidance Alliance. Kearney and Silverman (2010). Measuring the Function of School Refusal Behavior: The School Refusal Assessment Scale. SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions). Episode 58 of ABA Inside Track (Interview with Christopher Kearney). Kristen's website. Kristen's Instagram. This podcast is brought to you by: Frontera. Consider taking a demo of Frontera's Assessment Builder and see how the ethical application of AI technologies can help you serve clients and save you time! Your first assessment report is free. And if you use code BOP25 you'll get an additional five assessments for just $100. So head to fronterahealth.com to check it out! HRIC Recruting. Cut out the middleman and speak directly with Barbara Voss, who's been placing BCBAs in great jobs all across the US for 15 years. CEUs from Behavioral Observations. Learn from your favorite podcast guests while you're commuting, walking the dog, or whatever else you do while listening to podcasts. New events are being added all the time, so check them out here. The Behavioral Toolbox. Check out our courses for school-based and other behavioral professionals, including our newest one, Motivational Interviewing: Getting Educator Buy-In.