The pilot project could involve the development of special programs, perhaps in conjunction with battered women's shelters. If all parents were loving, attentive and skilled, there would be fewer runaways. But that's not the case. They don't know how to parent and often they don't want to parent. Schools need to be teaching life skills, including decision-making, sex education and knowledge of child development.
Successful programs can delay teen births and improve parenting skills.
Research has shown parent support groups to be effective. Churches, schools and nonprofit agencies can organize neighborhood-based groups. Keep kids productively involved. Some Dallas public schools have not taken truancy, an early warning sign, seriously enough. The current rollout of a centralized, automated system for issuing truancy notices will force the issue.