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Smith School credits outreach and incentives as chronic absenteeism drops to 12%
Summary
Principal Don Moore told the board Smith School cut chronic absenteeism from about 30% to 12% using daily visible tracking, classroom incentives and family-connection outreach; the assistant superintendent also announced a mobile outreach van funded by an opioid-trust grant to support dropout-prevention work.
Don Moore, principal of Smith School in Winterport, presented the school’s attendance strategy and results. He described visible classroom tracking (teachers hang 'yellow' or 'golden' bees on their door frames), daily attendance displays, classroom celebrations and targeted tiered supports for students with higher absenteeism.
"By looking at overall attendance trends, we can engage every staff member, every classroom, and every student in improvement," Moore said. He reported chronic absenteeism fell from about 30% to 12% in recent years, and staff credited classroom routines, family-connection efforts and a newly staffed outreach coordinator for progress.
At the assistant superintendent’s report, staff announced the district’s mobile office van has arrived; the van will be used for outreach and to provide Wi-Fi and meeting space as part of a dropout-prevention effort funded by an opioid-trust grant. The assistant superintendent said a quarterly grant-expenditure report will be brought to the board.
The board praised the Smith School results and asked for periodic follow-up on the outreach coordinator’s measurable impact as data become available.
