CCSD recently updated the Legislature’s Joint Interim Standing Committee on Education on steps it is taking to improve student attendance.
By the numbers: Chronic absenteeism halfway through this school year is 29.6 percent, a significant decline from last year’s 36.6 percent.
- The District told the legislative committee it has identified five root causes contributing to chronic absenteeism: basic needs not being met, sense of belonging, physical and mental health, childcare, and academic gaps.
What they’re saying: “As a system, sometimes you can feel like you’re alone with a problem,” said Dr. Mike Barton, CCSD Chief College, Career, Equity, and School Choice Officer.
- But the reality, Dr. Barton said, is that CCSD couldn’t tackle this challenging, multifaceted issue without our partners.
- Nonprofits, community organizations, local governments, state agencies, and the Nevada Legislature help provide vital wraparound supports to CCSD students.
The Every Day Matters campaign, kicked off by CCSD this school year, has provided consistent messaging to schools and families, said Danielle Jones, who recently became the CCSD director of chronic absenteeism.
The campaign has also made it a community issue, Jones said. “So it’s no longer just one school dealing with it, we’re trying to work together to solve this problem,” she said.
Another notable takeaway from the legislative meeting:
- Over 70 schools, including 300 participants, have signed up for a federally funded home-visit program to provide supports for families, which Jones says can focus on a root cause — a feeling of belonging.
- “This is important,” Jones said, “because when a student hears a knock on the door and it is somebody they know from school that they’re showing compassion and encouragement, they’re more likely to feel more connected.”
