Transformative solution to chronic absenteeism expands nationally for 2024-25 school year

Compass Care, funded by a $4 million grant from the U.S. Dept. of Education, will be implemented in California, Washington State and Tennessee

OAKLAND, Calif., Sept. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Compass Care, a family-centered, customized intervention that reduces chronic absenteeism for 5th-12th grade students, is set to begin in seven schools located in three states: California, Washington State and Tennessee. Over 300 underrepresented students will be enrolled in the program that's designed to address their individual needs, strengthen the support they have at home and re-engage them in school.

Chronic absenteeism is a national epidemic. While there are some signs of national attendance rates slightly improving year-over-year, some estimates have found 2023 to still be 75 percent higher than the pre-pandemic baseline. Many of the traditional ways to increase attendance, which are often heavily bureaucratic and punitive, have shown little positive effect on tackling this issue.

Compass Care's ten-week program bypasses many of the traditional methods and instead utilizes advocates (with lived experience) who are curious and compassionate, focusing on the specific needs of a student and their family. Whether those are based in aspects of the school system or other barriers at home, the advocates are prepared for circumstances that range from academic or mental health challenges to concerns for safety to a lack of reliable transportation.

"As a children's mental health agency, Seneca has focused on building trusting relationships with children and families for decades," says Robin Detterman, Seneca's Chief Program Officer. "We are thrilled to partner with districts across the nation to apply this experience to help re-engage students and families who are chronically absent from school. Disengagement from school is one of the most pressing and persistent effects of the pandemic, and we are eager to help develop and evaluate what we believe is a sustainable solution."

Already the recipient of a $4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Compass Care is hoping to change the national conversation about school attendance that goes beyond the classroom to create a more educated, family-centered, future-focused community.

Daren Dickson, Chief Culture Officer and Co-Founder of Valor Collegiate Academies, says, "At Valor we have been very concerned about the persistent chronic absenteeism rates in schools across the country, including our own. We are proud to have co-developed, with Seneca, a family-centered solution to this problem that has shown impressive results. Our Compass Care Team model meets students and families where they are and helps them collaboratively identify and remove barriers that are preventing them from living the lives they want to live. We are thrilled to be sharing this model with other schools across the country."

About Seneca Family of Agencies 

Seneca was founded in Oakland, California, in 1985 in response to an emerging crisis: children and young people with the most complex needs and unaddressed trauma were being repeatedly failed by multiple siloed public systems intended to support them. Seneca's foundational mission to do whatever it takes to bring multiple systems together to address the needs of the whole child has driven the agency's evolution into one of the largest West Coast-based youth-serving behavioral health nonprofits, operating programs across 18 counties in California and two in Washington State. Our programs collaborate with and actively bring together districts, behavioral health departments, child welfare departments, and juvenile probation departments to offer a full spectrum of highly responsive programs that address the multi-faceted needs of children and families.

SOURCE Seneca Family of Agencies