Assistant Director of Student Engagement & Attendance (Anticipated)

Description of Role:

To monitor student attendance activities and to work cooperatively with school administrators, staff, parents and students with a focus on keeping students in school, improving student and school attendance rates. The Assistant Director of Student Engagement and School Attendance

is aware of and has the ability to implement anti-racist practices, trauma informed practices and must work using a strengths-based mindset and approach. The position helps ensure that district wide processes and procedures are integrated and implemented consistently in the areas of school attendance and helps district staff understand the correlation between attendance and behavior/academic success.

Role Responsibilities:

• Develops a district wide approach to promote the importance of regular student attendance.
• Conducts home visits with parents and students to follow up on chronically absent students and gain parental support in students' educational, behavioral and social development.
• Identify and implement appropriate family intervention strategies to enhance student attendance in school.
• Work with school staff to identify chronically absent students and students on the verge of being chronically absent to implement strategies to increase student attendance.
• Analyzes and provides data to school staff, families and students regarding attendance.
• Develop statistical reports to evaluate school attendance issues.
• Train school staff about barriers to student attendance and the development of interventions to improve attendance.
• Identify and assist in eliminating obstacles to regular school attendance.
• Serve as a liaison between schools, families, and community agencies as it relates to student attendance and engagement.
• Support building teams during the School Based Support Team (SBST)/ District Based Support Team Meeting (DBST) process around student attendance and engagement matters.
• Maintains knowledge of current laws, regulations, school board policies and procedures, as well as emerging trends and current research in pupil attendance to increase school attendance.
• Works with school staff, students, parents, community agencies, to implement Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) to improve student attendance and engagement.
• Establishes procedures for attendance accounting for guardianship, foster care, displaced youth and students receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
• Follow district procedures for withdrawal of students.
• To appear and testify in court as it relates to student truancy and to present any required documentation in support of truancy charges/PINS petitions.
• Supervises the McKinney-Vento Liaison and works closely with the school buildings around students who are temporarily housed.
• Supervision of Attendance Deans.
• Perform any other specific and reasonable duties as may be requested by the District Director of Pupil Personnel Services.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Master’s Degree required;
• Valid NYS School District Leader (SDL) or School District Administrator (SDA) certification;
• 3 years’ administrative experience within public education desired, urban education setting is preferred.