Romulus attendance liaisons say judge-led sessions and outreach cut unexcused absences

Romulus Community Schools attendance liaisons told the Board of Education on May 13 that a mix of data monitoring, family outreach and biweekly informal sessions with a judge has coincided with a marked drop in recorded unexcused absences.

The liaisons — who serve the district’s elementary, middle and high schools — described a workflow that starts with pulls from the district’s mySTAR attendance reports and EduCLIMBER analytics, identifies students with three or more unexcused absences, and then coordinates meetings with school staff and families. For families who do not engage, liaisons said they refer them to an informal Tuesday session with a judge; parents who continue not to participate may receive citations.

The nut graf: liaisons said the combination of outreach, school-based resources and the judge’s sessions has helped reduce recorded absentee totals districtwide and also gives staff a formal process to escalate repeat cases.

Paul Futch, who described himself as a tech liaison working with sixth…