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Seminole schools report lower absences, referrals after ‘Finding Your Voice’ girls summit
Summary
District staff told the school board the third annual Finding Your Voice summit expanded to 23 schools and 302 students this year and cited declines in referrals, absences and failing grades for participating cohorts; the program remains free to students and is supported by district departments and local sponsors.
The Seminole County School Board on April 8 heard a presentation on the district’s Finding Your Voice girls summit, which administrators said reached 23 schools and about 302 students this year and produced measurable declines in disciplinary referrals, absences and failing grades for many participating cohorts.
District staff said the program began three years ago and expanded from 12 schools and about 120 students in year one to 23 schools and roughly 302 students in year three, with the culminating summit held at the University of Central Florida. Superintendent Beaman introduced the presentation; Dr. Cummings and program lead Ms. Faizon walked the board through the curriculum and outcomes.
Program leaders said the initiative combines an annual large-day summit with ongoing small-group counseling in schools. Organizers reported that 65% of participating schools showed reductions in at least one of three tracked outcome measures — attendance, discipline and academic performance. District presenters highlighted specific site results: Altamont Elementary reported a 50% drop in referrals and a 50% reduction in D/F grades in ELA and math from quarter 1 to quarter 3; Idlewild Elementary reported a 26% decrease in days absent and an 83% decrease in D/F grades; Midway Elementary reported a 100% decrease in referrals and a 75% decrease in D/F grades; Tuscawilla Middle’s group reported a 75% decrease in referrals and a 15% decrease in absences; and Rock Lake Middle’s group reported an 80% decrease in referrals and a 29% decrease in absences.
Presenters also cited participant survey results: 96% of responding students said they “learned valuable lessons,” 87% said they felt more connected to peers, and 89% reported having a trusted adult on campus as a result of the small-group work. Staff said the small-group curriculum is scaffolded across grades: fifth- and sixth-grade groups use the Girls in Real Life Situations curriculum; seventh and eighth grades use the Y-Try curriculum with a focus on resilience and perseverance. The district said the small-group lessons increased from six uniform lessons in early years to 18 differentiated lessons across the multi-year sequence.
Organizers confirmed the program is offered at no cost to participating students. Staff thanked internal district departments and community sponsors — including ePathways, Community Involvement, communications, the Wellness team, HCA Florida Healthcare (Lake Monroe Hospital and Oviedo Medical Center), and the Stanford Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. — and said 25 volunteers supported the full-day summit. The district also credited multiple counselors, social workers and school-based facilitators who lead the small-group interventions.
Board members praised the program and asked clarifying questions about metrics and the selection of highlighted schools. Vice Chair Garrick asked whether the measures shown were the three outcome measures tracked districtwide; staff confirmed the district tracked attendance, discipline and academic achievement and the highlighted schools met two of the three measures. Member Dellinger and others described attending sessions and said they found them valuable.
The presentation materials and staff comments stressed collaboration across counseling, social work, behavior intervention, communications and central offices to run the program and to evaluate outcomes.
The board did not take formal action on the presentation.
