Cesar Castoroz, the district irector of People Resources, told the Pomona Unified School District Board of Education on Aug. 13 that chronic absenteeism has fallen 13% since the 2023'4 school year and that the district will mark an attendance-awareness month starting with a Sept. 5 kickoff.

Castoroz defined chronic absenteeism as "when a student misses 10% or more of the enrollment of instructional day for any reason," and said the district is emphasizing early grades, targeted staff supports and community outreach because missing school early correlates with later reading and academic gaps.

The presentation matters because district staff and trustees said chronic absenteeism is an early indicator of students falling behind academically and carries downstream health and social risks. Castoroz cited historical context, noting chronic absenteeism averaged about 11% in 2018
9 and said the district views that level as a realistic target.

District staff described operational steps the district is taking: attendance specialists assigned by cluster to support every school, additional attendance clerks at high-priority elementary sites, targeted home visits and monthly school attendance competitions. Castoroz said the district has "tenant specialists" (attendance specialists) and that specialists "support the school" whenever a school has even one student in need of assistance. He said school-based incentives and an attendance poster contest will be part of September activities.

Castoroz said the districtonducted more than 100 attendees at last year

ttendance awareness events and that the kickoff day produced 75 home visits. He invited board members, administrators and community partners to participate in home visits and outreach on Sept. 5.

Representatives from the community program Justice for Youth and its Safe Passages team described how mentorship and case-management work with students on attendance and stability. "This isn't just a job for me. It's a calling," said Tricia Loya, a Safe Passages case manager, as she described goal-setting and transportation provided to students. Former students and program participants said the program helped them secure employment, continue schooling and serve as mentors: "I pay my own rent and bills, and I get to help other people who are going through what I went through," said Astrid Felix, identified as an ambassador with Justice for Youth.

Superintendent Darren Knowles and trustees thanked the presenters and several trustees said they observed welcoming, clean school sites during first-day visits. Knowles described Safe Passages as a grant-funded program in partnership with the district that supports Gary, Simon and Park West high schools.

No formal board action was taken on the presentation; it was delivered as a staff report and public comment period included supportive testimony. Board members said staff will make program information and outcome reports available online and that they will review program efficacy in follow-up reports.

The district emphasized early-childhood attendance as a priority: Castoroz singled out transitional kindergarten and kindergarten as age groups where absences often compound into long-term literacy gaps. He also relayed a county superintendentomment cited in the presentation: "If a student just misses 2 times a month, they will become chronically absent."