Waterbury officials outline chronic absenteeism trends and LEAP attendance plan, request ACES fiduciary role for grant

District staff told the Waterbury Board of Education on Jan. 7 that chronic absenteeism remains a priority, and they outlined local data, interventions and a federal grant-driven program designed to increase student attendance.

The presentation, led by Dr. Johnson with Assistant Superintendent Gopi and Family & Community Engagement Manager Sandra Romero, said the districtwide chronic absenteeism rate stands at about 26% at the 77th day of the school year. Staff said kindergarten chronic absenteeism is a particular monitoring goal and the district is targeting a 26% kindergarten rate and a 34.8% target for ninth grade. Presenters said Hispanic students and students with individualized education programs make up a large share of the chronically absent population.

District officials described layered strategies used at schools: parent and student education, chronic absenteeism teams (CAT teams) at every school, reward and incentive programs, nudge letters, home visits and referrals to community services. Staff highlighted site-level efforts such as Washington Elementary’s “Candyland” attendance board as an example of a classroom incentive. The presentation also reviewed more intensive responses: referrals to community partners such as Waterbury Youth Services or the Department of Children and Families when warranted, and the LEAP (Learner Engagement and Attendance Program) grant that pays staff to do outreach and home engagement outside normal hours.

Romero said LEAP launched in 2021 as a response to COVID-related attendance decline. The district is in its third LEAP cycle and currently runs LEAP at four schools; the district hopes to expand to additional schools including North, Brittan (referred to as Bridal in the meeting) and Kennedy High School. The board was told LEAP funds can pay city-level coordinators, team leaders and engagement specialists to make the kinds of outreach — including home visits — that the CAT teams prioritize.

Romero said the district asked the board to approve a no-cost professional services agreement with Area Cooperative Educational Services (ACES) to serve as fiduciary manager for LEAP. The grant amount cited in the presentation was $534,650 from the Connecticut Department of Education’s ARPA allocation; ACES would handle hiring, onboarding and payroll for LEAP personnel. The transcript records the request for approval but does not record a final vote on that item during the segments provided.

Board members asked about root causes and interventions. Staff cited common drivers: family travel for holidays, cold weather that discourages walking to school, illness (Norovirus/flu/COVID rounds), medically fragile students and caregiving responsibilities in families. Staff emphasized the CAT teams’ role in drilling down to individual causes and intervening early; they noted that after about 18 absences in one school year it is difficult to reverse the trend.

The presentation also described the LEAP grant operations and the district’s plan to expand LEAP in the next cycle. Romero said LEAP supports telephone outreach, home visits and engagement outside normal school hours and is overseen locally by a family and community engagement manager.

Board members asked about bullying and school safety as potential drivers of absenteeism. Dr. Johnson said the district has not found evidence that bullying is a dominant cause at scale but agreed CAT teams should check for it as part of investigating individual cases. Staff also said some parents kept children home during periods of social-media threats earlier in the school year even though police and district officials assessed the threats as noncredible.

The district presentation closed with next steps: continued CAT-team work, LEAP expansion planning and closer school-level interventions. The transcript excerpts provided the presentation and the request to approve ACES as fiscal manager; the record supplied does not show the board’s final vote on the LEAP fiduciary agreement.

The board will receive further updates as LEAP expansion and school-level interventions proceed.