Pupil services PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

1. Pupil servicesPROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT September 2013

2. Meeting Objectives • Review School Attendance Data Profiles • Monthly and Cumulative Attendance Data • Attendance Performance Bands • Discuss School Site and Community Assessment strategies and activities • Plan for Absence Prevention and Early Intervention • Understand Truancy and Required Notifications • Access Additional Attendance Improvement Tools

3. Attendance Tools

4. Accessing the Pupil Services Website http://pupilservices.lausd.net

5. Under Tools/Guides for Counselors

6. Attendance Data

7. Assessing School and Community Data: An Essential Strategy for Pupil Services Staff

8. August Data Profiles!

9. School Purchased PSA Data Profiles Select your ESC

10. % of students attending at/above 96% Summary tab by ESC Select tab for your school Page 1

11. Monthly Attendance Rates Period Attendance Submittal Cumulative Rates Page 2

12. Month to MonthversusCumulative Attendance Rates Understanding your school’s data

13. Monthly Attendance Data (In-Seat Attendance) Monthly attendance data • is an average of the attendance for all students enrolled in the school for a specific month • may be used to look at trends and changes over months/years Monthly Attendance Rate Actual Attendance Days All Possible Attendance Days =

14. Monthly Attendance Rate Class/School Attendance Rate (20+19+25) (25+24+25) 86.5% = = Student Attendance Rate 80% 100% 79%

15. Practice: Monthly Attendance Rate September 2013 Rate = 96% 1 absence with 25 days enrolled Rate = 95.8% 1 absence with 24 days enrolled Days Enrolled = 218 Days Attended = 201 201/218 = 92.2% Calculate the student attendance rates and class attendance rate for the month of September.

16. Cumulative Attendance Rate Cumulative Attendance Rate is: • an average attendance rate over a period of time (e.g., August through June) • Default in MyData under Month to Month Comparisons

17. Cumulative Attendance Rate Actual Attendance Days (month 1, month 2, month 3) All Possible Attendance Days (month 1, month 2, month 3) Cumulative Attendance Rate

18. Monthly Attendance Rate Monthly Attendance Rate is:

19. Group Discussion • What is the difference between monthly and cumulative attendance rates? • How can you use the monthly attendance rate to inform your practice and/or plan for the school year?

20. Month to Month Attendance versus Performance Meter Attendance Rate Understanding your school’s data

21. Attendance Bands:Attendance Achievement The Attendance Bands: • Are broken down into 5 bands: Advanced, Proficient, Basic, Below Basic, and Far Below Basic • Track the number/percent of students in each defined attendance band The Performance Meter captures the percent/number of students with 96% attendance or better (Advanced and Proficient bands).

22. Attendance Bands 2013-14 Goal: 76% of students attending at least 96% of the time Chronic Absence

23. Tracking Student Attendance Achievement

24. Where to access your school’s Attendance Bands… • Log in to MyData • Under the “School” dropdown menu, select “Attendance” • Select the “At-Risk Attendance” tab • Use the filters on the left side of the page to navigate to your school’s data • Click the “GO” button for the filters you have chosen

25. Where to access your school’s Attendance Bands…. “At Risk” tab Display as options Filters

26. Group Discussion Through the month of August, there are 13 instructional days. • What is the maximum number of absences that a student may have to achieve 96% attendance or better? • What type of activities/campaigns can you plan for the 50th day of school (October 24th) using the attendance achievement data?

27. School Community Assessment

29. Assess the School Site • Support • Who is available to support attendance at the school? • Teachers, support staff, or volunteers • Culture • How have attendance expectations and information been shared? • Beliefs around attendance • Prevention and intervention strategies • Has there been a school attendance policy?

30. Assess the Community Support • What supports are available in the community? • Donations, partnerships, businesses Culture • What are the beliefs around school attendance and graduation/culmination? • Do community businesses serve students during school hours?

31. Planning for Absence Prevention

32. Attendance Expectations • Communicate attendance expectations to students, parents/guardians, and staff: • School attendance policy • Gain buy-in from stakeholder groups • Collaboration with staff, parents, and students • Advertise attendance data (gains/losses)

33. Identifying and Engaging Stakeholders Discussion: • To which stakeholder groups have you already presented attendance expectations? • Who have you not yet reached out to and what is your plan to engage them?

34. Create an Attendance Campaign Monthly themes and communication strategies Visit the Pupil Services website for Monthly Strategies and Themes for October

35. Create a Monthly Recognition Program • Establish criteria: • What/Who will be recognized? • When will recognition(s) take place? • How and where will recognition(s) take place? • Identify resources to sustain program: • Staff (Who at the school can help?) • Reward$ (Funding availability/donations) • Supplies (certificate paper, butcher paper, camera, etc.) • Attendance Report(s) (ISIS/SIS)

36. Monthly Recognition Program Example • Recognize students that have achieved 96% attendance by the 25th, 50th, 75th day of school • Recognize students that have achieved perfect attendance on a monthly basis • Recognize students that have improved attendance

37. OCTOBERELEMENTARY TIERED LEVEL SUPPORT PROFICIENT/ADVANCED ATTENDANCE: • Bulletin Board • Attendance Certificates • Recognition Letter (i.e., 50th Instructional Day) BASIC ATTENDANCE: • Warning Letter (3 or more absences) • Small group student conferences (Secondary) • Blackboard Connect message BELOW/FAR BELOW BASIC ATTENDANCE: • Attendance Improvement Meetings (AIM) • Blackboard Connect message • Small group student conferences (Secondary)

38. October • Columbus Day and Halloween (School Days) • October 24th is the 50thday of school • ***Only month without any days off!*** • November • November 11th is Veterans Day • Thanksgiving Break is Nov. 25th -29th Looking ahead…

39. Fun Themes for October Computer Learning Month Cookie Month International Drum Month National Pizza Month National Popcorn Popping Month Breast Cancer Awareness Month 5th Do Something Nice Day & World Teacher’s Day 6th Mad Hatter Day 7th World Smile Day 14th National Desserts Day 16th Bosses Day 26th Make a Difference Day For ideas and tools, visit the monthly strategies section under “Tools/Guides for Counselors” on the Pupil Services Website

40. STRATEGIES FOR EARLY INTERVENTION

41. Prior Year Attendance • Identify students that had excessive absences in previous year • Monitor progress in current school year • Recognize improvement • Provide intervention to students with on-going chronic absenteeism

42. Identification • Review Case Transfer forms and/or documentation of services from prior year • Generate list utilizing ISIS/SIS in previous school year. • Generate list utilizing MyData-Early Alert-At Risk System

43. Intervention • Send Last Year’s Excessive absences letter to students that did not meet the performance meter in previous year. (Appendix M-3) • Conduct student assembly reminding them of attendance policy and student support systems at school (invite support staff to present) • Develop an incentive program for students that improve by end of semester/school year.

44. Attendance Improvement Meetings: An Essential Strategy for Early Intervention

45. Attendance Improvement Meetings • A best practice for early intervention • Targeting students and/or parents of students with excessive absences from the prior year and/or so far this year • Teaching and reinforcing clear, positive expectations for student attendance

46. Truancy Classification

47. Truancy EC Section 48260 A pupil…absent without a valid excuse three full days in one school year or tardy or absent for more than a 30-minute period during the school day without a valid excuse on three occasions in one school year or any combination thereof, shall be classified as a truant EC 48260.5 requires that upon the a pupil’s initial classification as a truant, the school district notify the pupils parent or guardian. LAUSD NOT (Notification of Truancy) letters are generated monthly to meet this state mandate.

48. TRUANCY LETTERS Automated vs. School Generated

49. Truancy Letters • Criteria: • Students between 6 and 18 years • Accumulated three or more reason codes of 3, 2, 0, UC, or blank within a school year; including unexcused tardies of 30 minutes or more coded with a reason code 3 • Absence Codes that do not count towards Truancy: • 1-Excused • 4- Suspension • 5-Prior principal approval • District receives $18.91 per letter generated

50. School Site Responsibilities:Notification of Truancy LettersPreparation and Follow-up Procedures • Initial Notification of Truancy (NOT) Letter Automation Procedures REF-Bulletin 5464.2 outlines requirements prior to and following the mailing of NOT letters.