During the edLeader Panel webinar, Roll Call! Addressing the Roots of Absenteeism with MTSS, leaders discussed how improving attendance and engagement can be done by focusing on the youngest learners—kindergarten through second grade—and provided practical, proven strategies for supporting early learners’ attendance habits.

Lakota Local School District in Southwest Ohio has about 17,700 students and more than 2,000 employees and reports an overall attendance rate of 94 percent. It’s a highly diverse district with 29 percent of the students being economically disadvantaged, about one-fourth being gifted, and 11 percent being English language learners.