2024 ACSA Leadership Summit

Join us as we share the inspiring journey of a low-socioeconomic high school in Virginia Beach. Faced with a lack of systems and procedures, they quickly set to work, focusing on improving the school's "on-time graduation rate" (OTG). Starting with an OTG of 89.43%, they implemented data-driven systems and closely collaborated with school counselors to track student performance. By the end of the first year, their efforts resulted in an impressive 95.16% OTG rate.

Despite this success, they recognized a significant challenge: a chronic absenteeism rate of 27.80%. To address this, they adopted the Coordination of Services Team (COST) model, inspired by the Alameda County Health Care Services. The COST team, comprising various stakeholders, met weekly to discuss roughly 200 students at risk of not graduating. Through these meetings, they identified tier 2 and 3 supports and targeted interventions, focusing on improving attendance.

By the end of the second year, their comprehensive approach led to a 94.17% OTG rate and a slight decrease in chronic absenteeism. In their third year, they intensified their interventions, achieving a remarkable reduction in chronic absenteeism to 13.64% and projecting an OTG rate of 98.15%.

This session will provide an in-depth look at their strategies, interventions, and the sustainable systems they built. Attendees will leave with practical insights on implementing similar tracking systems, understanding the power of the COST model, and exploring a variety of interventions to improve graduation rates and reduce absenteeism in their own schools.