Superintendent Parsons updates board on buses, star ratings and plans to pilot school telehealth to curb chronic absenteeism

Superintendent Tim Parsons briefed the board on transportation, state star ratings, chronic absenteeism and possible interventions.

On transportation, Parsons said the district is short on bus drivers, operating fewer routes and actively recruiting; he told trustees the district currently transports about 1,300 students, down from roughly 1,500 last year, and that routing and driver shortages created a waiting list the district has worked to reduce. Parsons said efforts include social-media recruitment and using standby drivers to fill gaps.

Parsons reviewed recent state star ratings and school-level performance: Churchill County High School moved from a 2-star to a 3-star rating after gains in science proficiency, participation and graduation indicators; other schools recorded modest index gains. He noted some state data remain pending due to state technical issues and that more detailed metrics will be presented at the October workshop.

On absenteeism, Parsons presented two measures of chronic absenteeism (the NSPF rate used for star ratings and the federal Nevada Report Card rate). He said the district’s NSPF chronic-absence rate was about 21.4% this year (down from prior years) while the Nevada report-card rate remained higher (about 30.3%), and urged further analysis to determine how chronic absence correlates with graduation and academic risk.

To reduce barriers that lead to missed days, Parsons described a potential pilot of Hazel Health, a telehealth service that would allow virtual visits (with parental consent) and on-site nursing support. He said the donor-funded pilot could be implemented with an estimated district cost under $20,000 annually (he cited a rough figure of about $17,000 per year) and emphasized there is no conclusive evidence yet linking the service directly to reduced chronic absenteeism; the district will research outcomes and possible grant funding before finalizing the commitment.

Parsons also noted the district’s strategy to drill into absenteeism by grade and to monitor which absences are medically excused versus not, and he said the district would continue to pursue attendance interventions while maintaining health safeguards so sick students are not kept at school.