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.

Comprehensive Attendance Plan
Goal 1: In 2017/2018, the grade level with the most students with chronic attendance were 3rd grade and 5th grade, with 17 students each for a total of 34 students. In 3rd and 5th grades, our goal is to reduce the number of students with chronic absenteeism by 8 students on each grade level, for a total decrease of 16 students. for the 2018/2019 school year. 

Goal 2: Overall chronic absence in 2017/2018 was 13.55% (11.21 chronic; 2.45 severe chronic). Our goal is to reduce overal chronic absence by 5%.

Goal 3: In 2017/2018, 3rd grade had the highest level of students with satisfactory attendance with 69.23% of students attending 95% or more school days. The goal for satisfactory attendance is to increase the percentage of students attending 95% or more in every grade level by 5% the end of 2018/2019.

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

Monitor Data

• Create a school team that regularly reviews attendance data for trends for all students and identify how many and which students fall into the different tiers of needed support.
• Establish a school plan for reducing chronic absence based on an analysis of strengths and challenges around school climate and attendance practice.
• Use qualitative and quantitative data to identify common barriers to attendance. 

• Create a school climate that encourages students to come to school everyday.
• Provide an engaging curriculum that draws students to school.
• Keep school clean and clear of health hazards that contribute to asthma and respiratory disease.
• Cultivate an atmosphere where students feel respected and safe.
• Offer programs before and after school to engage students.
• Provide enrichment activities for students, such as field trips, assemblies, and dances.
• Greet students and families at the door in the morning.
• Reinforce positive, welcoming experience in the front office.
• Create visuals (bulletin boards, banners, posters) that reflect attendance messaging and modify during the year to sustain impact. 
• Explain expectations for attendance, and how absences can add up, in back-to-school materials and at events.
• Tell parents how to report an absence.
• Ensure that school has opportunities for parental engagement and involvement including organized parent groups, learning at home, and volunteer opportunities.
• Provide activities that engage students and families.
• Offer opportunities for before and afterschool programs at the school.
• Offer field trips, dances, assemblies, book fairs and other activities.
• Call when students miss school to express concern.
• Welcome students back after absense and identify any academic support needed.

• Create friendly competition among classrooms offering raffles, parties and public recognition for good and improved attendance.
• Celebrate individual progress through weekly, monthly and periodic recognition using bulletin boards, certificates, verbal and written acknowledgement.
• Recognize students and parents at special assemblies (Grade Level, Parent Nights, Parent University, PTSA, SAC meeting).

• Place calls home each day that a student is absent.
• Include attendance on report cards and in report card conferences.
• Integrate information about chronic absence into parent programs and communications throughout the year.
• Host a transition meeting (i.e. incoming kindergartners and families new to the school) with incoming families to help them learn about their child’s new school, get to know their teachers, and to set expectations about attendance including clearly communicating how absences can add up and impede learning, along with helping families to understand all of the learning that happens in the early grades 

• Invite parents and community members to help address the barriers that keep children from attending school. Strategies could include: A school breakfast program and/or food pantry to address hunger and nutrition needs;  a safe walk to school program to address community safety; health interventions such as flu shots, dental checkups and asthma management plans; a clothing drive for winter coats or school uniform exchange; adoption of a school climate initiative aimed at improving approaches to student discipline and creating a more welcoming environment 

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

Monitor Data

• Review attendance at least weekly for students who are chronically absent or at risk of chronic absence (due to chronic absence in the past or existence of a health challenge such as asthma).
• Look for patterns in attendance.
• Look for qualitative data to assess the underlying cause for a student’s continued absences.
• Evaluate whether students with persistent chronic absence need an appropriate Tier 3 response.

• Provide information and attention that underscores concern for children
• Call or send letter to alert family to attendance concerns and explore what help may be needed. (If possible, use a nurse to make contact especially for student with a medical condition).
• Suggest a home visit and/or conference to address barriers to attendance.
• Use a Student Attendance Success Plan to help develop family strategies to support improved attendance.
• Provide parents with family-friendly, easy-to-understand information and/or assistance in reaching out to social services or community resources that may be helpful in addressing barriers identified.
• Help parents understand and avoid legal consequences of extreme chronic absence.
• Identify and provide for family needs e.g. food pantry, clothing assistance, and literacy program
• Nurture teacher interest and capacity in helping to reach out to chronically absent students and their families.
• Maintain contact with family to ensure they are receiving needed support.
• Identify academic needs of the student and develop a plan to provide appropriate tutoring and coaching services.
• Determine if the student has make up work that is needed to keep up their grade point average and ensure the student and their family understand what make up work is due. 

• Establish specific individual goals and provide recognition as they are met.
• Work with students and families to set attendance goals and time frames.
• Engage students in tracking their own attendance daily.
• Recognize good and improved attendance weekly.
• Develop strategies with students based on age, interest and other factors 
• Assign student an attendance buddy.
• Recruit students for engaging afterschool activities.
• Provide morning check-ins for students.
• Schedule Parent/School Staff Conference to discuss absences (Principal, Assistant Principal, Teacher, School Counselor, etc.).
• Assess student and family needs.
• Refer families to appropriate services e.g. social services, human resources, housing, and health services.
• If possible, arrange transportation to and from school with other families or staff.
• Makes home visits and connect families with needed resources.
• Work with students and families to develop strategies for improved attendance.

• Identify barriers to attendance, such as health, transportation or housing.
• Involve public agencies and community partners and resources as needed to address barriers to attendance.
• Involve the school nurse with follow-up on medical related absences. 
• Provide families with information on community resources that can help overcome barriers. 
• Connect families with school-based resources that can support good attendance.

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

Monitor Data

• Identify which, and how many, students have a history of missing 20% or more of school and/or at-risk due to other major challenges (involvement in child welfare, juvenile justice, HEART/homelessness etc.).
• Review attendance daily and ensure that Tier 3 students are in school each day.
• Follow up on each absence for each student identified for Tier 3 intervention.

• Assess student and family needs and intensify outreach.
• Determine if the student and their family is or should be agency involved. If they are, work to set up a meeting to coordinate services.
• Refer students and families to appropriate service agencies e.g. social services, human resources, counseling, housing, and health services.
• Work with relevant agencies to develop a comprehensive educational plan that also address student and family needs.
• Share data with appropriate agencies and ensure that agencies are using chronic absence as a must respond to indicator.
• Work with families to avoid legal consequences to the extent possible. If necessary, leverage the power of the courts to involve families and students in needed services and interventions
• Determine if the Courts have access to additional programs or services that would assist the family in overcoming barriers to attendance.
• Work to ensure that the student is connected to positive supports and programs (e.g. mentoring, social worker, positive peer interactions, etc.).
• Utilize lessons learned from working with families and students in tier three to inform tier one and two prevention and intervention efforts. 

• Incorporate appropriate positive reinforcements into plans for supporting the student’s improved attendance.

• Ensure continued positive and regular contact with the family. 
• Check in on agreements at appropriate intervals.
• Follow through on commitments of support to the family. 
• When the student misses school ensure assigned personnel is following up on each absence.

• Implement agreed upon family intervention plan.
• Monitor for progress.
• Connect students with chronic physical and mental health issues to medical providers.