Happy March! We hope this month finds you well. Below you will find some helpful attendance information and resources.
Utah Attendance Success Stories/Celebrations
This month we want to highlight LEAs and schools who are working hard to promote positive attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism.
We want to highlight Murray School District for all of the hard work they are putting into improving attendance across the district. This month, they’re launching an exciting March Madness: Attendance initiative. Schools within the district are participating in a friendly competition using a bracket system, but rather than competing directly against each other’s average daily attendance (ADA), each school is challenging its own ADA data from last year. The competition is based on the percentage change in attendance, with schools comparing their improvement to others in the district. Here is a video that they had students make to help with the initiative. Murray School District is also implementing other innovative strategies at every level to increase attendance awareness and remove barriers for students. Way to go Murray!
We want to highlight Copperview Elementary School in the Canyons School District. They introduced Attendance Mentors during Parent/Teacher Conferences. Staff members were assigned to families of students identified as “at risk” due to attendance concerns and academic struggles. These mentors met with families before or after their conferences to develop Attendance Problem Solving Plans, setting attendance and academic goals. A follow-up meeting is scheduled in five weeks to assess progress, with incentives provided for students and families who meet their goals. Thanks for such a great example for other schools to follow!
Attendance Webinar
Our next Attendance Webinar Series #2 will be March 11, 2025 at 10:30am. We are looking forward to hearing from Ogden School District who is highly engaged in attendance work. We will also be talking about attendance messaging and attendance calendaring. Here is a flyer with more information. Please forward this information to other contacts.
Cohorts
We are looking forward to starting our Engagement and Attendance Cohorts for the 2025-2026 school year. Engagement and Attendance Cohorts are year long, collaborative learning opportunities for LEAs, charters, and/or individual schools. Starting in May, this cohort will take part in 6 trainings led by USBE attendance specialists. These trainings will also be collaborative sessions to help develop, build, and implement an attendance system that works for your specific LEA/charter/school. Please contact one of the attendance specialists if your team would like to join this opportunity.
Helpful Articles/Podcasts
Spring Attendance Slump Resources
Attendance Works
Upcoming Dates/Information
*January-March 2025- The Utah Legislative Session has been going the last few weeks and will finish this Friday, March 7th.
*March 11th at 10:30am- Attendance Webinar Series #2
We appreciate all you do. Please let us know how we can best support you and your schools.
USBE Attendance Specialists
https://www.schools.utah.gov/prevention/absenteeismtruancyprevention
Megan Menlove
Attendance Support Specialist
Utah State Board of Education
