The START Program

As a result of the Roundtable discussions, the START (School Tardiness and Attendance Review Team) program was developed, by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office.  START is a multidisciplinary approach to addressing poor attendance. The program’s goal is to intervene with a young person early, at a point when a poor pattern of attendance is beginning to emerge yet has not yet seriously interfered with the child’s academic or social development. 

The START program is a multidisciplinary team consisting of representatives from schools and local law enforcement; as well as representatives from the Middlesex Juvenile Court’s Department of Juvenile Probation and the Massachusetts Department of Social Services.  START allows for both the child and parent’s needs to be assessed quickly and for the family to become familiar with the various agencies and resources that may be able to help.  It is hoped that this type of early intervention will divert families from becoming formally involved with the court system and/or social services. 

*For more information please contact Margie Daniels at margie.daniels@state.ma.us