Tag: Preventing-Absenteeism

Turning a Districtwide Challenge into Measurable Progress

Following COVID-19, Liberty Hill experienced a significant drop in attendance, mirroring national trends. But where others saw a crisis, Sandy saw an opportunity to create lasting change.

With clarity, determination, and a student-first mindset, she implemented a comprehensive attendance framework to catch unexcused absences early and intervene before they become chronic.

Her approach wasn’t about quick fixes. It was about structure, consistency, and accountability.

Building a Four-Tier System That Works

Sandy led the development of a clear four-tier attendance process involving all campus stakeholders, from teachers to administrators. This ensured:

* Early identification of attendance concerns

* Defined intervention steps at each stage

* Shared ownership across campuses

* Consistent, documented communication with families

By aligning the district around one cohesive system, she transformed attendance from a reactive process into a proactive strategy.

Leading with Empathy and High Expectations

What sets Sandy apart is her balanced leadership style. She understands that attendance is deeply connected to family circumstances, trust, and communication.

Rather than relying solely on automated robocalls or impersonal notifications, she championed meaningful outreach, ensuring families felt supported while maintaining clear expectations.

Her philosophy: accountability and empathy can and must coexist.

Results That Speak for Themselves

The impact of her leadership was immediate and measurable.

In the first year of implementation, Liberty Hill High School improved attendance by two percentage points, an impressive gain in today’s challenging educational landscape. More importantly, the district established a repeatable model that continues to strengthen student engagement and reduce dropout risk.

These aren’t small wins. They represent real students back in classrooms, real instructional time regained, and real futures protected.

A Model for Attendance Leadership

Sandy Scott’s work stands as a powerful example of what modern attendance leadership looks like:

* Data-informed decision making

* Structured, districtwide systems

* Early intervention strategies

* Cross-campus collaboration

* Communication rooted in empathy

She isn’t just managing attendance, she’s reshaping how a district approaches student presence and persistence.

Strengthening the Work with the Right Tools

To scale and sustain this transformation, Sandy partnered with RaaWee Attendance+ to streamline workflows, centralize documentation, and strengthen communication across campuses. With greater visibility into unexcused absences and a more efficient intervention process, her team was able to act faster, collaborate more effectively, and ensure no student slipped through the cracks.

By aligning a clear districtwide strategy with purpose-built attendance technology, Liberty Hill built a system that delivers both consistency and compassion.

Through determination, structure, and the right strategic tools, Sandy Scott is proving that meaningful attendance gains are not only possible, they’re also sustainable. And when leadership and technology work together, districts can create lasting, districtwide impact.

Every missed day is a missed opportunity for learning, and every chronic absence is a challenge for your school, your staff, and most importantly, your students. Improving attendance doesn’t happen through one big initiative; it comes from consistent, intentional actions that make a real difference every day. That’s the main idea behind Quick Wins for Attendance, a series developed in partnership with attendance expert Sharon Bradley, who brings over 25 years of experience helping schools strengthen relationships, systems, and strategies that support students showing up and thriving.

The series focuses on practical, immediately actionable strategies that schools and districts can use. The first five episodes highlight everyday practices that often go overlooked but have a big impact:

• • Home visits approached in ways that respect families and build trust
  • Phone calls that prioritize understanding over compliance
  • Improvement plans developed collaboratively with achievable steps
  • Attendance meetings guided by productive, solution-focused questions
  • Attendance letters designed to inform and encourage, not intimidate 

These foundational strategies help districts communicate more clearly, engage families more effectively, and intervene early to prevent chronic absenteeism.

Future episodes will expand to schoolwide systems, including aligning staff roles, creating predictable routines, designing supportive Attendance Review Boards, reimagining parent engagement, and more. 

Quick Wins for Attendance is built to support attendance teams with focused, actionable guidance drawn from real experiences in schools across the country. If you are interested in future topics or practical solutions to specific challenges, feedback is welcome at Sharon.Bradley@raaweek12.com to help shape a resource that makes attendance easier, more strategic, and more impactful.

Watch all episodes of Quick Wins for Attendance on our YouTube channel, Everyday Matters, and start applying these strategies in your school today.

A Clear Vision: 96% Attendance for All Students

Plano ISD has set an ambitious but achievable goal: maintaining a 96% or higher attendance rate across all student groups. This commitment reflects a district-wide belief that consistent attendance is essential for learning, equity, and long-term achievement.

To support this vision, district leaders developed a comprehensive action plan that integrates early identification, tiered interventions, and campus-level accountability. Attendance is no longer treated as an isolated issue but as a shared responsibility across teachers, principals, families, and community partners.

Meeting the Challenges of a Diverse District

Plano ISD has experienced a significant rise in its emerging bilingual population since 2015. Recognizing that language can be a barrier to engagement, the district prioritizes multilingual communication, from newsletters to social media updates, so every family feels seen and supported.

The emphasis on clear, caring communication is woven into every touchpoint. Instead of traditional tardy slips, the district now issues “welcome slips”, a small but powerful shift that reframes attendance as belonging rather than punishment.

Partnerships that Drive Engagement and Funding

A standout feature of Plano ISD’s strategy is its ability to rally the community around attendance. Partnerships extend across:

• Local businesses and faith-based organizations that provide wraparound support for families.
• Professional sports teams like the Dallas Mavericks, who reward students with game tickets for strong attendance.
• Education foundations and nonprofits, which help fill gaps in funding and services.

These partnerships not only incentivize students but also strengthen public awareness of why attendance matters. The district has even tracked the financial impact, noting $300,000 in savings linked to improved attendance interventions.

Engaging Families as Partners

Parents are central to Plano ISD’s attendance improvement efforts. Through surveys like the family partnership essay, the district gathers direct feedback on barriers families face and resources they need. Parent liaisons host in-person sessions, helping families connect the dots between attendance and long-term academic outcomes.

By creating opportunities for two-way communication, the district ensures solutions aren’t just top-down but co-created with families who understand their children’s unique challenges.

Restorative Practices and Wraparound Services

Plano ISD’s efforts go beyond monitoring attendance numbers. Restorative practices and the Plano Attendance Review Board give students and families the chance to address underlying challenges, whether social, emotional, or economic. Counselors and social workers provide wraparound services, ensuring students not only show up to school but are also ready to learn.

Recognizing and Celebrating Progress

To keep momentum strong, Plano ISD celebrates schools that make gains through its Attendance Campus Champions program. Competitive elements, posters, and monthly recognition help keep attendance top of mind for staff and students alike.

Lessons for Other Districts

Plano ISD’s approach shows that tackling chronic absenteeism requires a balance of data-driven strategy and human-centered engagement. By aligning communication, partnerships, and restorative supports, the district is making attendance a shared community priority.

The takeaway for other districts? Attendance improves when families feel supported, students feel celebrated, and the community feels invested.

Strategies to Tackle Chronic Absenteeism

Hedy Chang from Attendance Works discussed tackling chronic absenteeism post-pandemic through empathy interviews, student focus groups, and a tiered support system. She also referenced the ‘Back to the Classroom’ report by the Ad Council Research Institute, highlighting the importance of positive, supportive messaging. To reduce chronic absenteeism by 50% over five years, Chang emphasized the need for systemic, data-informed strategies, an approach shared by RaaWee Attendance+, which supports schools in making informed, student-centered attendance interventions.

understanding the Root Causes of Chronic Absenteeism
Hedy Chang from Attendance Works emphasized the critical need to understand why students miss school, advocating for tools like empathy interviews, student focus groups, and attendance cafés to gather meaningful insights. She highlighted a post-pandemic surge in chronic absenteeism driven by weakened learning conditions, such as reduced student engagement, safety concerns, and a lack of belonging.

Tiered Support Systems for Sustainable Change
Chang introduced a tiered support system to address absenteeism, beginning with foundational strategies like clear communication and positive reinforcement, and escalating to more targeted interventions. 

Positive Messaging and Trusted Relationships
Referencing the “Back to the Classroom” report by the Ad Council Research Institute, Chang emphasized the power of positive, supportive messaging over shaming families. She underscored the importance of trusted messengers like teachers in effectively communicating the value of attendance. 

A Nationwide Commitment to Reducing Chronic Absenteeism
Chang proposed a nationwide goal of reducing chronic absenteeism by 50% over five years, a vision already backed by 14 states and Washington, D.C. She called on districts to adopt this goal and work with community partners to build long-lasting, systemic improvements. Like RaaWee Attendance+, Chang’s vision centers on using data-informed strategies and community engagement to drive meaningful, long-term change in student attendance.

A Cross-Functional Attendance Team

The district has built a multi-layered attendance team that includes the Assistant Superintendent, Director of Student Services, Chief Technology Officer, and other key leaders. This team meets weekly to review data, assess interventions, and coordinate responses.

At the school level, counselors and administrators join the effort, ensuring that every tier of support is grounded in shared responsibility.

Clear meeting cadences, defined roles, and consistent review of referrals keep the system aligned and proactive.

Tiered Attendance Interventions

MSD Warren Township uses a three-tiered intervention framework to address student absenteeism:

• Tier 1 focuses on universal support; such as timely and accurate attendance tracking and re-engaging students when they return from absences. 
• Tier 2 includes targeted, school-level support for students with rising absence trends. 
• Tier 3 delivers intensive interventions for chronically absent students, often involving external partners and family conferences. 

By escalating support based on student need, the district ensures that interventions are responsive, not reactive. 

Real-Time Data to Guide Action

To support accurate tracking and intervention planning, the district uses RaaWee Attendance+. The platform helps teams manage attendance data, review referrals, and suppress absences when needed, such as in cases involving medically homebound students.

Systems That Move the Needle

MSD Warren Township emphasizes execution and accountability through weekly team meetings and strategic planning. They have adopted principles from The 4 Disciplines of Execution framework by Chris Hennessy and Sean Covey to focus on a few high-impact goals at a time, ensuring that everyone, from central office to campuses is working toward shared outcomes.

This system-level alignment strengthens consistency and helps build a sustainable attendance culture across the district.

Community Partnerships and Wraparound Supports

Recognizing that absenteeism often stems from outside the classroom, MSD Warren Township has opened the door to grassroot organizations and community agencies. These partners support students through mentoring, art therapy, and respite programs, all coordinated through the district’s centralized resource center.

During attendance meetings, families are connected with community-based supports that address broader challenges from mentoring to mental health, helping the district respond more holistically to chronic absenteeism.

A Unified Response Rooted in Support

MSD Warren Township’s strategy shows what’s possible when structure, data, and community come together with purpose. Through its tiered approach and focus on real-time action, the district is doing more than tracking attendance, it’s building a culture of support that helps every student feel seen, valued, and encouraged to show up.