The Attendance Awareness Campaign concluded its 2025 webinar series with “Family Engagement Lays the Foundation for Attendance and Learning,” hosted by Attendance Works and the Institute for Educational Leadership.

Hedy Chang, executive director of Attendance Works, shared new research from Chicago and California with initial findings showing that positive school climate and strong family connections are more predictive of improved attendance than neighborhood factors alone. She outlined the shift schools must make: from one-way communication to two-way partnerships, from focusing only on problems to leveraging family strengths, and from compliance-driven truancy responses to prevention and collaboration.

A short video illustrated how consistent, positive communication between teachers and parents builds trust, setting the stage for families and schools to work together when challenges arise.

Jo Ellen Latham, Ed.D., associate superintendent of teaching and learning at Southeast Polk Community School District in Iowa, said her district cut chronic absence to 14% by mobilizing teacher leadership. A districtwide attendance task force of teacher leaders, instructional coaches and counselors worked in three focus groups: using data through the Panorama platform, implementing evidence-based practices and strengthening family-school partnerships. Strategies included real-time data dashboards, “2×10” relationship-building conversations (two minutes a day for 10 days with targeted students) and proactive communication to help families navigate online systems. Results showed improvements across every grade level and demographic group tied directly to gains in student achievement.

Lindsay Chavez, director of learning support services at Perris Union High School District in California, emphasized that family engagement is crucial even in high school settings where chronic absence is often most stubborn. Perris integrated attendance improvement into its Community Schools Partnership Program, aligning resources for mental health, housing, nutrition and enrichment opportunities. Parent advisory committees — ranging from English learner and African American family councils to site-level community school groups — serve as forums for surfacing challenges and co-creating solutions. Community liaisons and engagement specialists bridge cultural and language gaps while workshops and partnerships with local nonprofits ensure families have the tools and resources to support student success.

Tara O’Barsky, Ed.D., director of school climate and safety and James Hesen, supervisor of family, community and school programs at Wicomico County Public Schools in Maryland, described Wicomico’s “Arrive to Thrive” campaign, a districtwide initiative that unifies schools around a positive attendance culture. Each school has a pupil personnel worker who, alongside principals and liaisons, helps families address root causes of absence ranging from housing instability to food insecurity. Attendance teams meet weekly to review data, celebrate progress and coordinate interventions. Creative strategies — such as using the school band to parade through hallways in celebration of improved attendance — reinforce positive messaging. Technology also plays a central role: the district’s student information system and TalkingPoints communication platform allow real-time data analysis and parent outreach in multiple languages. Messaging has been reframed to be supportive rather than punitive, strengthening trust with families.

• Find a list of links to the many resources shared in the chat box during this webinar.
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