District 99 leadership proposes single-year focus on student attendance, paired with stricter accountability and supports

Superintendent Hank Thiele asked Community High School District 99 staff and the board to prioritize improving student attendance as the district’s single, top focus for the coming school year, saying the district will pair “increased accountability and consistency and consequences” with interventions and supports.

Thiele said the recommendation grows from a package of survey results — a new Comprehensive School Climate Inventory (CSCI), a district spring survey and a morale study with EAB — and from leadership-team feedback that placed regular attendance at the top of district priorities. “The goal is now that we have a strategic plan, now that we have these measures, that we go out to our staff, our students, our families, and try to triangulate what it is that we should really focus and work on,” Thiele told the board.

District staff described several linked findings: the climate…