Date & Time: Thursday, September 17, 2026 at 2 p.m.
Districts have invested heavily in attendance systems, early warning indicators, and intervention teams. Yet many are still asking the same question: why aren’t attendance gains matching the effort?
Research and district experience suggest that the missing piece is family engagement that goes beyond one-way notifications. By building stronger connections with families, schools can intervene earlier and more effectively, uncover root causes, and help get students back in school.
Join a panel of researchers, district leaders, and field experts putting this approach into practice for a conversation on what this new research says and how family engagement is working in real districts today. You’ll leave with practical takeaways you can apply in your own district.
Bonus: Attendees who join the live event will be able to participate in a ThoughtExchange workshop to share and rank best practices from their peers.
You’ll walk away with:
- The Latest Research: What’s actually driving attendance improvement — and why compliance methods and notifications are falling short
- A Better Understanding of Attendance: Why understanding root cause is becoming central to attendance improvement — and how districts can get there at scale
- Stronger Family Partnerships: Practical strategies districts are using to move family engagement from one-way notifications to real, trust-building relationships
- The “Attendance Works” Model: An understanding of this tiered intervention model, its alignment to the MTSS framework, and how technology can help districts prioritize who needs support
Family engagement done right gets to root causes that dashboards can’t and drives the attendance gains dashboards alone can’t produce. That insight is what makes earlier, more effective intervention possible districtwide. Join us to see how and leave with strategies you can put into practice right away.
Speakers
Shane McKay, Assistant Superintendent, East Central Independent School District (TX)
Dr. Ann Marie Vaughn, Principal, Pocono Mountain West Junior High School (PA)
Dr. Mallary Swartz, Director of Research, TalkingPoint
Dani Dyess, Principal Product Manager – Attendance, TalkingPoints
Moderator: Kate Pechacek, Founder/CEO, OpendoorsEd
Sponsored by
