The District of Columbia Public Schools’ (DCPS) McKinley Middle School announced a new initiative to accelerate efforts to fight chronic absenteeism among its middle school students. This effort implements an innovative, human-centered service model from Concentric Educational Solutions to engage students and families in addressing the academic, social, emotional, and environmental factors contributing to chronic absenteeism.
McKinley Middle School is located in Northeast DC on the McKinley Technology Education Campus and is part of a premier STEM-centered community dedicated to developing the whole child by fostering innovation and a passion for learning. This is achieved through rigorous and meaningful academic and extracurricular experiences that prepare all stakeholders and students to thrive in their postsecondary and career pursuits.
To accelerate efforts to return students to school, reengage them in learning, and reconnect them to opportunity, McKinley’s staff sought a partner that could go beyond automated texts and emails and provide targeted, in-home outreach to students labeled as chronically absent. Following a careful review of potential partners, McKinley selected Concentric Educational Solutions to support the school’s efforts to reduce chronic absenteeism.
Concentric’s unique approach leverages trained members of the community to gather real-time insights from students and families that help school systems respond to student absences earlier, align resources, and address the factors driving disengagement. Services Concentric will provide to McKinley Middle School include:
- Home visits by trained, community-based teams to enrolled McKinley Middle School students identified as chronically absent or not attending school
- Engagement with families through collaborative discussions to identify barriers to attendance
- Custom ethnographic research from noted scholar and Howard University Professor Dr. Ivory Toldson interpreting the data collected during family engagements and outlining how and why chronically absent students have disengaged from learning
- Collaboration with school administrators that turns research into intervention and remediation strategies for the students and families engaged during home visits
“Our mission at McKinley is to develop the whole child and prepare them for success in their postsecondary and career pursuits, but that is not possible if they are not in school,” said Principal Kortni Stafford. “Our new partnership with Concentric Educational Solutions reinforces our commitment to helping every single student grow and achieve. By engaging families directly, we are moving past simply counting absences and instead are actively addressing the real barriers to learning. This is about building a supportive bridge back to the classroom so every student at McKinley can access the rigorous academic and career opportunities they deserve.”
Chronic absenteeism, defined by the U.S. Department of Education as missing 10% or more of school days, emerged as a serious challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the American Enterprise Institute’s Return 2 Learn Tracker, chronic absenteeism surged nationwide from 15% before COVID-19 to 28% in 2022 and remains elevated at 24% in 2024.
“Concentric Educational Solutions is proud to partner with Principal Stafford and her talented team as they accelerate their efforts to drive chronic absenteeism down across the school,” said Concentric Educational Solutions CEO Molly Hebert Loyd. “McKinley Middle School is deeply committed to helping every chronically absent student return to school and re-engage in learning, and we are excited to support their efforts.”
To learn more about Concentric Educational Solutions’ approach to combating chronic absenteeism and download the company’s new white paper on chronic absenteeism, visit the company’s website, follow the organization on X, or connect on LinkedIn.
About Concentric Educational Solutions
Concentric Educational Solutions collaborates with school systems and community partners nationwide to combat the urgent issue of chronic absenteeism and reconnect children and families to opportunity. Through an innovative, human-centered service model, Concentric helps students return to school, re-engage in learning, and build pathways toward their fullest potential. Learn more at www.concentriced.org
