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District report: chronic absenteeism up, sense of belonging improved; suspensions remain disproportionately high for Black students
Summary
Staff told the board chronic absenteeism rose this year (projected ~24%), sense of belonging targets were met (with survey adjustments), and suspension rates remain disproportionately high for African American students; staff proposed CCT plans, restorative training, an integrated data system and targeted staffing.
District staff presented the Guardrail 2 monitoring report on attendance, sense of belonging and disproportionate discipline.
Assistant Superintendent Tony Payne told the board chronic absenteeism spiked in the winter and is on track to end the year closer to 24–25 percent, reversing recent progress. "The news is not good," Payne said, describing tiered coordinated care team (CCT) plans and a need to scale relational approaches at sites that have stronger attendance.
Carolyn Frylee Norman reported the district met its sense‑of‑belonging target but noted the measure change (removing a neutral response on the secondary survey) that affected year‑over‑year comparison. On discipline, staff showed African American suspension rates remain much higher in middle and high schools and proposed expanding and standardizing restorative practices, piloting staffing adjustments and refreshing the behavior matrix.
Principal Malaya Mouton Fuentes described a school‑level shift to push‑in restorative supports and follow‑up menus that kept students in class and reduced repeat referrals. Commissioners pressed for clearer data linking suspensions to learning‑loss minutes and asked that staff present concrete budget tradeoffs ahead of June.
