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SCHENECTADY
Schenectady High winning attendance battle
BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter
Reach Gazette reporter Kathleen Moore at 395-3120 or moore@dailygazette.com.

    Three years ago, a quarter of Schenectady High School’s freshmen weren’t showing up for school. Now, for the fi rst time, the attendance rate is finally breaking into the 90 percent range.
    For the first two quarters of the school year, attendance has hovered around 90 percent. That’s a small improvement over last year, when attendance was 88.8 percent for the same period.
    But there’s still a long way to go. In an ideal world, the only students not in school would be those with occasional, excused absences — such as a sick day. If every student at the high school took 5 days off for illness each year, the school would have a 97.3 percent attendance rate.
    The state considers an acceptable attendance rate to be 92 percent. While that rate is still far away, the district has improved significantly over the freshmen attendance rate of 76 percent in 2009-10. Since then, the district, using a state School Improvement Grant, hired two attendance deans to track down students and get them to school.
    “The first year it was, ‘We’ve got to get more kids in the building.’ Now it’s ‘We’ve got to get more kids into class,’ ” attendance dean Matt Van Dervoort said. “This year, we’ve been able to break it down, target specific areas of the day, groups of students. The problem is whittling its way down.”
    Their job is getting easier. Last year, the deans focused on freshmen, in hopes of building good habits that could last the rest of their school years.
    This year, that’s paying off: Sophomores are coming to school far more regularly than in the past, Van Dervoort said. The students who failed ninth grade have the worst attendance, he said, but the deans now know what to expect with them.
    They’re also bracing themselves for the flood of truancy they expect to see in the spring. Last year, they were surprised to see attendance plummet dramatically in the last quarter of the school year.
    “We know it’s coming now,” attendance dean Jeff Leahey said.
    They plan to target students who are heading to summer school. Those students may have decided it’s not worth trying to complete the school year.
    They’re also going to offer a carrot, setting up summer jobs through Roots and Wisdom and the county job training program. Students with good attendance will be given jobs, which may encourage them to keep coming to school once the outdoor weather is warm and inviting.
    In another incentive, the deans began offering intermittent rewards this winter to those who get to class before the fi rst period bell. On certain days — announced in advance — every student who is seated before the bell gets entered into a lottery for Schenectady basketball game and school dance tickets. ....................>>>>.........................>>>>..................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r01000&AppName=1

Wow - an "Attendance Dean".

Not saying it isn't needed - but the fact that it is needed...  Not good.

So now we are basically paying students to attend school.  So now where does the school get the funds normally generated by the tickets?

"announced in advance — every student who is seated before the bell gets entered into a lottery for Schenectady basketball game and school dance tickets."

This is like the Metroplex idea for schools.  

Ok....so now let's see if they can 'graduate' them without substandard reading, writing and math skills.........yes?

Quoted from JackBauer

Wow - an "Attendance Dean".

Not saying it isn't needed - but the fact that it is needed...  Not good.

The "attendance dean" is nothing new -- they had one back at Mont Pleasant High School in the late 1970's.

Anyway --- Schenectady High School should be applauded for greatly improving their attendance number.  It is a move in the right direction.

I'm packing my stuff up and moving to the Schenectady City School District.  With high taxes and crime, and now with the school attendance improving, I better get my kids enrolled before the classes fill up.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

The "attendance dean" is nothing new -- they had one back at Mont Pleasant High School in the late 1970's.

Anyway --- Schenectady High School should be applauded for greatly improving their attendance number.  It is a move in the right direction.

You were in the birth canal to long.  You were headed in the right direction but didnt make it out in time..  

A great big "Huzzah!" to the Schenectady School District -- one of the most diverse and most under - rated in the region....

Quoted from Hamburg

A great big "Huzzah!" to the Schenectady School District -- one of the most diverse and most under - rated in the region....

Your easy to impress.  Low expectations.

Just going to school doesn't equate to smarts....and just going to school doesn't equate to learning anything more than the mediocre.....

school was a bore when I was in school....it was herding cattle....classes were boring and nothing was challenging......

Quoted from senders

Just going to school doesn't equate to smarts....and just going to school doesn't equate to learning anything more than the mediocre.....

school was a bore when I was in school....it was herding cattle....classes were boring and nothing was challenging......

Just getting to school does increase the opportunity to learn --- and higher attendance rates does translate into better performance in school.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

Just getting to school does increase the opportunity to learn --- and higher attendance rates does translate into better performance in school.

just going to school increases the oppportunity to be hammered/burned/shaved/sandpapered into fitting into the 'current' mould of urbane civilisation....

why don't you fit?

Another big nothing. Schenectady and Albany Districts have been in a long running race to the bottom. City parents have been filling the Brown School and our great Catholic City schools for years. On top of their record school taxes they have to pay private tuition.

     Attendance is the least of the problems. How many that graduate can read and write at a 12th grade level? How many are prepared for college or a trade? Back in the day there was an excellent industrial arts program with GE which prepared Mt Pleasant grads for high paying private employment. Get back to partnering with GE and Union College. Stop wasting millions on busing, magnet schools and dead end arts courses.

...ballet and art, how smart liberals aren't.

Quoted from GrahamBonnet

...ballet and art, how smart liberals aren't.

Screen writing for the fine arts students-bread and circus for the masses. They are "winning" like Charlie Sheen.