DATE:
June 4, 2024
TO:
Principals and Assistant Principals
FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Michelle Reyes, Prevention Specialist, Student Services
SUBJECT:
Attendance Summer Tips and Resources for Families
The arrival of summer provides an opportunity to take a deep breath, rest, and prepare for the coming school year. It is also an ideal time to set the tone for the upcoming year for staff, students, and families surrounding attendance. Utilize the summer to dive into data, identify students who struggled to attend, reach out to families, build relationships of trust, and make a plan to build the capacity of staff to address attendance issues.
The White House Summit-Every Day Counts Summit 2024 addressed the issue of chronic absenteeism and increasing student engagement. Presenters from research-based initiatives and districts leading the way with improving chronic absence shared best practices surrounding attendance. The key ingredient to moving the needle is increasing student connectedness.
Attendance Works has created a model for outreach and intervention regarding connection with students and families to reduce chronic absence. Included are models for summer, the first month of school, and ongoing practices and events.
AT A GLANCE-
Things you can do now to help with attendance later:
- Drive with Data-Review attendance data from the 2023-2024 school year, note students chronically absent this year in need of support.
- Make a Plan-Make a plan to provide extra support to these students and families throughout the summer and for the upcoming year.
- Personalized Invites-Send personalized invites and make personalized phone calls to these families informing them of and inviting them to important upcoming events (orientations, first day, back to school night, etc.)
- Build relationships-As you visit with families listen to what they need, look for opportunities to build the relationship, and remove barriers they may be facing.
- Assign a mentor-Assign these students a champion in the school to mentor them from the first day of school.
- Set one school goal aimed at attendance for the 2024-25 year.
For more guidance or help, contact Michelle Reyes-michelle.reyes@jordandistrict.org or (801)567-8205.
