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.

Goal 1: In 2017/18, the grade level with the most students with chronic absence was 12th grade with 215 total students (199 chronic absence and 71 severe chronic absence). In 12th grade, our goal is to reduce the number of students with chronic absenteeism by 40 students (a 20% reduction) for the 2018/19 school year.
Goal 2: Overall chronic absence in 2017/18 was 32.04% (18.17% chronic, 6.88% severe chronic). Our goal is to reduce overall chronic absence by 10% in all grade levels.
Goal 3: In 2017/18, 9th grade had the highest level of students with satisfactory attendance with 52.13%. The goal for satisfactory attendance is to increase the percentage of students attending 95% or more in every grade level by the end of 2018/19 to 35% of students. 

West Broward High School will increase student attendance by focusing on the following areas:

• Increasing 3% on student attendance among ninth and tenth grade students by 2nd semester attendance.
• Increasing 2% on student attendance among eleventh and twelfth graders on 2nd semester attendance .
• Increasing personalized learning opportunities for eleventh and twelfth graders.
• Increasing student attendance for all students in core academic classes (Math, Language Arts, Social Studies and Science)
• West Broward High School will use a variety of communication measures to inform parents about their child’s attendance and to connect students and families with resources that support improved attendance.
• Notification will include but not limited to Phone call, Letter, Meeting, Parent link phone calls to home about absence, school social worker gets involved to open lines of communication and enforce policy 5.5

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

o The administration will ensure that all teachers have completed the Brainshark training for taking classroom attendance and maintain a record of teachers that have completed the training,

o Monitoring attendance-taking procedures will take place weekly by the Attendance clerk and as requested by administration.

o To ensure that students are being monitored with fidelity, guidance counselors and social workers will monitor Basis & Pinnacle every four weeks to identify students who are categorized as chronic absent.

o At the end of each month, an absentee report will be generated and reviewed by administration, guidance, social worker, and RTI team.

* Engage Students and Families

o Administration will engage parents and students on the importance of school attendance through various methods: newsletters, parent link, student assemblies, marquee announcements, banners, flyers, parent nights, open house, athletics, PA announcements, clubs and sponsors,

o With PTSA, deliver importance of attendance in SAC and SAF and other community based organization.

o Guidance counselors and administration visiting PSAL personalization periods

o Using social media such as twitter to promote the benefits of attending school.

* Recognize Good and Improved Attendance

o Principal’s recognition of those individuals who display exemplary attendance each marking period.

o Students will be recognized monthly with awards or certificates to students who have demonstrated excellent attendance.

* Provide Personalized Outreach

o The incoming 8th graders will have an opportunity to participate in the annual Bobcat Bootcamp where excellent attendance is expected.

o Conduct a Curriculum Night for incoming 8th grade and transferring students with a positive message for attendance consistency

* Remove Barriers

o WBHS provides free breakfast daily for all students.

o The school encourages students to participate in extracurricular activities such as athletics and clubs.

o WBHS provides many Career Technical Education (CTE) courses that encourages and assists students to explore college and career opportunities for future endeavors.

o WBHS will conduct an effective PSAL program beginning in the 9th grade that promotes a healthy student attendance habits for success.

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

• Tiered 2 Strategies and Interventions to Improve Attendance:Adminstration, Attendance coordinator and Social worker will review attendance every week and identify students who are chronically absent or at  risk chronic absence.  

• Teacher calls parent after five unexcused absence to alert family to attendance concerns and research what help may be needed. 
• Parent-link phone calls to home about absences.
• School gets parent to sign the attendance agreement at 5-day letter.

• Recognize good and improved attendance by providing students with attendance awards and certificates to students at a mini assembly. 

• Nuture teacher interest in helping to reach out to chronically absent students.
• School sends letter home about absences and tardies.
• Social worker will assist with strategies and resources to improve attendance.  

• A conference will take place to address barriers to attendance to identify the needs of the student. 
• Provide information and resources to overcome barrier about support from the Student Service Department within Broward Schools School Social Worker, Family Counseling, HEART). http://www.Browardstudentservices.com

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

o WBHS will identify students will a history of chronic absenteeism (missing more than 20% of a school year)

o Administration and guidance will monitor the non-attendance report from Data Warehouse, Basis, and Pinnacle

o Assign teacher mentors through personalization periods to assist in mentoring and encouraging students to attend school daily.

o The Collaborative Problem-Solving Team (CPST) and Respond-to Intervention teams will address the needs of chronic absent students with a well-developed student attendance plan.

* Engage Students and Families

o Create and implement best attendance researched based practices that has successfully decreased severe chronic absenteeism.

o WBHS will work with students and parents that have been flagged by the Division of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to resolve suspended licenses with a plan to meet the attendance goals and restore driver’s license or permit.

* Recognize Good and Improved Attendance

o The principal will have special events to those students who have improved their attendance every four weeks.

o WBHS Student Government Association will assist in recognizing and attendance improvement.

* Provide Personalized Outreach

o Working in conjunction with Community Based Organizations (CBO) will work with students that have been identified as severe chronic students.

o Consult with the School Social Worker and school’s Family Counselor as a resource for helping families with attendance concerns.

* Remove Barriers

o Implement agreed upon family intervention plan.

o For cases of possible abuse, neglect or endangerment, administration and or guidance will contact the appropriate agencies.