Building meaningful connections between school and home to increase attendance

Key points:

In my role as Assistant Director of Student Services, I have learned that the most crucial factor in improving student attendance is not about policies or procedures, but about connections. Our district serves a diverse community of working families, including many newcomer families. We have faced our share of challenges, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, but we are moving forward by focusing on what matters most: our students and their families.

At Alvord Unified, we have learned that operationalizing our strategic goals around attendance is not just about setting goals, but about creating systems that foster meaningful engagement. By focusing on building strong connections between school and home, we not only improve attendance rates, but we also drive better student outcomes across the board. Our approach demonstrates that when we align our daily operations with our larger strategic vision, we can create a school environment where every student is empowered to succeed.

Before the pandemic, our district maintained a respectable 95 percent attendance rate, with chronic absenteeism hovering between 12 and 14 percent, similar to surrounding districts and national averages. However, when COVID-19 hit, we saw our chronic absenteeism skyrocket to 25 or 30 percent, mirroring the struggles faced by districts across the country.

The pandemic created an opportunity for a new approach to care management.

As we emerged from the pandemic, it became clear that we needed a new strategy. For years, our Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) had included provisions for an attendance management program, but implementation had always taken a backseat. The post-COVID landscape, with its unique challenges and shifting priorities, provided the perfect opportunity to readdress this need.

During the peak of the pandemic, our schools were overwhelmed. They had to juggle tracking COVID cases, managing exposure periods, and trying to maintain some semblance of normal operations. It was during a conversation about reducing the burden of attendance letter mailings that I saw our opportunity. If we could automate these processes, we could free up our staff to focus on what really matters: connecting with students and families.

After researching options and consulting with colleagues at state conferences, we decided to implement State of the school as our attendance management system. This change wasn’t just about keeping track of numbers, it was about completely transforming the way we approach attendance.

SchoolStatus has become an integral part of our attendance strategy. It handles much more than just systematic notifications. The system automates attendance tracking and generates real-time reports that allow us to identify trends and at-risk students quickly. It manages our compliance requirements and ensures that we send out legally required notifications, such as the crucial first notice outlining parent responsibilities under the California Education Code. This system allows us to operationalize our strategic goals around attendance and turn our vision into concrete, daily action.

But perhaps most importantly, we can now prioritize our outreach efforts. By providing clear, actionable data, staff can focus their energy on the students and families who need the most support. This targeted approach means we don’t just send out general communications, but initiate meaningful, personalized interventions.

Personal connections are the cornerstone of our support strategy.

Our teams now have time to make personal calls to families. These aren’t just about following up, but opportunities to understand the barriers families face and offer real solutions. Whether it’s providing information about affordable public transportation, offering bus passes, or even helping with gas cards, we’re committed to breaking down any barriers that stand between a student and their education.

I always tell our team, “It doesn’t matter how many programs we offer if your child is not in school. I can have social workers, community workers, and/or counselors, and serve steak and lobster every day, but it doesn’t matter if your child doesn’t come to school. We can’t support you as a student or as a family if you’re not here.”

The efficiencies we’ve gained from having a comprehensive attendance management solution has allowed us to shift our focus from paperwork management to relationship management. Our staff can now spend their time having those crucial conversations with families, understanding their unique situations, and working together to find solutions that work for everyone.

To further strengthen our community ties, we have instituted “Community Connection Days.” On these days, our entire Educational Services team (about 20 people) gets out of the office and into the community. We knock on doors, not as disciplinarians, but as concerned educators looking to help. It’s about showing families that the entire district, from the classroom to the administrative office, cares about their child’s success. These initiatives exemplify our commitment to engagement that drives improved student outcomes, showing how personal connections can translate into tangible results.

Our efforts are paying off with improved attendance rates.

Our efforts are paying off. In the 2021-2022 school year, our P2 report (which determines funding based on average daily attendance) came in at 91.5 percent. The following year, we hit 93.15 percent, an improvement of more than 1.5 percentage points. When you’re talking about a district with about 16,000 students, that increase means we’re getting more kids to school and more kids engaged every day.

As we continue to put our strategic goals into practice, we set ambitious targets and implement comprehensive measures to achieve them. This year, we are aiming even higher with a goal of achieving 95 percent attendance. We are not just dreaming big; we are working to make it a reality:

1. We have secured a $9.5 million Community Schools Grant, which will allow us to hire six community coordinators to build even stronger family connections.
2. We are implementing a district-wide Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) to ensure we are meeting the needs of all students.
3. We have added nine social work interns and two full-time social workers to provide additional support.
4. We are investing in positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) at both the primary and secondary levels.
5. We are expanding our Saturday School programs, which not only provide additional learning opportunities but also help make up for missed days of attendance.

Creating a sense of belonging is at the core of our relief efforts.

At the end of the day, what matters most is that every student feels like they belong in our school community. It's not just about getting kids into their seats, it's about creating an environment they want to be in. As educators, it's our job to genuinely care about every student's success and make sure that both students and their families feel that care.

If there’s one piece of advice I can offer to other districts looking to improve attendance, it’s this: Get to know your community. Understand their stories, their struggles, and their strengths. Be efficient in your processes, but never at the expense of compassion. Because when a parent or student can tell that you truly care about their success, that’s when real change begins to happen.

At Alvord Unified, we don’t just track attendance, we also put our strategic goals into action to create a community where every student knows they matter, every day. By focusing on meaningful engagement that drives better student outcomes, we are transforming the way we approach education. Our track record shows that when we align our daily practices with our larger vision, we can create a school environment where attendance is not just a number, but a reflection of a thriving, connected community.

As we continue to refine our approach, we are not only meeting our attendance goals, but also setting the stage for long-term student success.