Goals for the Attendance Plan

1. A school's response for this section should be in SMART format for improving attendance for each category reported in the data tables.
• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Realistic/Rewarding
• Timely
2. Address early grades at your school level (K & 1, 6th Grade, 9th Grade). Analyze school-wide data to determine needs at grade levels and times of year when challenges occur more often.

School attendance data are provided reporting percent of students with satisfactory attendance, at-risk attendance, chronic absenteeism, and severe chronic absenteeism. The two-year trend allows for comparison of attendance over time and an indication of how strategies implemented to improve attendance are working.

1. Chronic absenteeism has increased from 22.97% to 28.05% from 2016/17 to 2017/18. One goal at Sanders Park Elementary is to reduce overall chronic absenteeism by at least 1% by the end of 2018/19.

2. Satisfactory attendance (students attending 95% or more school days) decreased from 46.1% to 42.6% from 2016/17 to 2017/18. Our goal is to increase satisfactory attendance by at least 1%.

3. Kindergarten satisfactory attendance decreased from 37% to 29% through the 1st to 2nd semester 2017/18. This year’s goal is to increase satisfactory attendance for all kindergarten students and mitigate the spring slide at this grade level. The spring slide difference was 8% in 2017/18, this year we aim to decrease the difference for satisfactory attendance between 1st and 2nd semester (Kindergarten).

4. There is a spring slide where overall satisfactory attendance decreased from 47.6% to 39.6% through 1st and 2nd semester 2017/18. Our goal is to continue to reduce the difference from the spring slide by the end of 2018/19 by at least 1%. (The spring slide was reduced by 10% from the previous school year.)

Tier 1 Strategies for Attendance

Tier 1 Strategies for Attendance - Address all five core ingredients. Tier 1 is aimed at 100% of students, parents, school staff, and community stakeholders. This is where you cast a wide net. Strategies are general to reach the largest audiences and include all employees and stakeholders.

Tiered plans will include strategies and interventions for the 5 core ingredients.

• Monitor Data
• Engage Students and Families
• Recognize Good and Improved Attendance
• Provide Personalized Outreach
• Remove Barriers

A. Monitor Data
• The administrator responsible for school attendance will ensure that all teachers have completed the
Brainshark training for taking classroom attendance at the elementary level (K-5). The administrator should
maintain a record of teachers that have completed the training.
• Monitoring attendance-taking procedures will take place weekly by the Attendance Clerk and as
requested by administration.
• Twice each quarter, School Counselors will monitor BASIS and Data Warehouse to set goals for students in
school-wide recognitions.
• At the beginning of each month, the administrative team will request from the IMT to provide a report for
current year attendance categories to monitor improvement and steer the direction of attendance
initiatives.

B. Engage Students and Families
• School staff will be encouraged to reach out to parents by phone or email to remind parents about the
importance of attendance in the early grades.
• Principal will provide monthly updates via ParentLink and PTSA meetings regarding Average Daily
Attendance and the Chronic Absenteeism categories, celebrating the students that are attending 95% or
more.
• Front office staff will meet each month to discuss customer service responsibilities and adapt procedures
for ensuring a welcoming environment when visitors enter the front office (students, parents, guests, District
staff).
• The Attendance Phone line will be checked and cleared daily by the attendance clerk.

C. Recognize Good and Improved Attendance
• School-based attendance recognition events will occur throughout the school year. These will include
quarterly certificates and school-based attendance recognition and may be combined with honor roll
assemblies.

D. Provide Personalized Outreach
• School staff will host a transition meeting for students moving from Pre-K into Kindergarten. Families will meet
the team of teachers, tour the school, and learn about the importance of regular attendance for their
child’s academic success through their senior year.
• Attendance will be included on all student report cards.
• Integrate information about chronic absence into parent programs and communications throughout the
school year.

E. Remove Barriers
• This school provides free breakfast for all students, every school day.
• A bike rack enclosed in a lock gate is available for students that arrive by bicycle. The rack is locked after
school begins and is unlocked and monitored by staff after school.

 

Tier 2 Strategies and Interventions to Improve Attendance

Tier 2 Strategies and Interventions to Improve Attendance - Address all five core ingredients. Tier 2 identifies students using early warning indicators to make connections with students and families at the onset of the school year or emergence of patterns of non-attendance. Early warning indicators include prior year chronic absenteeism, 3 or more absences in the first 4 weeks of enrollment, more than 10% of school days absent in any time period from the beginning of enrollment.

- Tier 2 represents between 10-20% of students at all schools in Broward County. This is true at individual schools and across the District.

- Chronic Absenteeism: Absent for 10% or more school days. These absences include excused, unexcused, and suspensions as days of instruction missed.

Tiered plans will include strategies and interventions for the 5 core ingredients.

• Monitor Data
• Engage Students and Families
• Recognize Good and Improved Attendance
• Provide Personalized Outreach
• Remove Barriers

A. Monitor Data
• Each week, the leadership team will review the non-attendance report from Opti-Spool during leadership
meetings. Students will be identified, and teachers will be notified which of their students might be at-risk.
• Weekly, using BASIS, the leadership team will identify students that have enough absences to be considered
chronically absent.
• Teachers will monitor attendance using Pinnacle and BASIS and consult with support staff for help in
redirecting absenteeism behavior.
• School Counselors, will monitor attendance with the leadership team to help identify students that may
have a need for more wrap-around services.

B. Engage Students and Families
• School Counselors, as part of the leadership team and support, will reach out by phone to speak with
parents of chronically absent students to identify if any support is needed for the family.
• If needed, parents and student will work with the School Counselor or School Social Worker to develop a
personalized “Student Success Plan for Attendance” to make sure the child doesn’t miss too many days
and get back on track with good attendance. There is a correlation between good attendance and good
academic performance.
• Staff will help identify any family needs and connect the family with services (food pantry, clothing
assistance, literacy programs, transportation).

C. Recognize Good and Improved Attendance
• We will work with students and families to set attendance goals and time frames that are attainable to help
improve attendance for at-risk or chronically absent students.
• Recognize these students routinely for good and improved attendance. Positive reinforcement and trusting
relationships with staff improve attendance.

D. Provide Personalized Outreach
• Parent-Teacher Conferences with support staff will be scheduled to discuss absences and challenges to
identify the barriers we may be able to assist with.

E. Remove Barriers
• Involve the school nurse when necessary to follow-up on medically related absences and train staff to
recognize signs of illness.
• Connect families with the School Social Worker to provide insight as to the role of a School Social Worker,
establish a relationship, and provide clinical support and services.

Tier 3 Interventions

Tier 3 Interventions - Address all five core ingredients. Tier 3 is the highest level of intervention and support for students that are absent 20% or more school days during the year.

- At most schools, Tier 3 interventions are utilized for about 5% (or less) of the student population.

Tiered plans will include strategies and interventions for the 5 core ingredients.

• Monitor Data
• Engage Students and Families
• Recognize Good and Improved Attendance
• Provide Personalized Outreach
• Remove Barriers

A. Monitor Data
• Identify students with a history of severe chronic absenteeism (missing more than 20% of a school year).
• Leadership team will monitor the non-attendance report from OptiSpool, data from BASIS to identify
students that are missing too many school days.
• Attendance data is one of the main metrics brought to discussion for Collaborative Problem-Solving Team
(CPST) and Response-to-Intervention (RtI). Attendance data may help uncover bigger issues the student or
family are experiencing.

B. Engage Students and Families
• Refer students to appropriate service agencies (social services, human resources, counseling, housing, the
HEART team for homeless education, or health services).
• Share data with appropriate agencies and ensure that agencies are using chronic absence as an indicator
for assisting families.
• Utilize best practices from schools within the District that have been able to decrease chronic absences
and increase satisfactory attendance.
• The Broward Truancy Intervention Plan (BTIP) may initiate truancy letters to hold 5-day or 10-day meetings
with the parents, principal (or designee), District representative, and State Attorney’s Office for the 17th
Judicial Circuit Court of Florida.

C. Recognize Good and Improved Attendance
• For the students at Tier 3, appropriate positive reinforcements will be included in their “Attendance Success
Plan” to support continued improved attendance. This plan will be developed with the parents, School
Counselor, and School Social Worker. Plans and goals will be shared with the child’s teachers.
• Tangible incentives may be utilized to help students and parents improve attendance.

D. Provide Personalized Outreach
• Ensure continued positive and regular contact with the family.
• Consult with the School Social Worker as a resource for helping families with attendance problems.
• When the student misses school, ensure the assigned personnel is following up on each absence.

E. Remove Barriers
• Implement agreed upon family intervention plan. Monitor for progress.
• Connect students with chronic physical and mental health issues to medical providers.
• For cases of suspected abuse, neglect or endangerment, contact the appropriate agencies to report