Principal Weekly Update
A big thank you to the Oglesby Fire Department for coming out and running our annual fire drill and visiting our Pre-K classrooms as part of Fire Prevention Week. We appreciate the support our schools have from all of our first responders and the excellent work they do to keep our schools and community a safe place for all.
Pictured above is information about the S.O.S. fall fundraiser. Thank you to S.O.S. for the support they provide to our schools. S.O.S. plans different events for families provides support for field trips and many other activities and projects. Your support of this fundraiser is greatly appreciated!
Attendance Initiative
Lincoln School is aiming for 95% attendance this school year. Over the last few years we have seen a steady decline in our attendance rate and a rise in our chronic absentee rate. Our attendance rate has steadily declined since 2021 when we had an attendance rate of 96.1%. Last year our attendance rate reached a low of 92.8%. Chronic Absenteeism is defined by a student who misses 10% or more of the school year. This figure has rapidly increased at Lincoln School from 7.5% in 2021 to a high of 24.3% last year. Students who miss out on that much of a school year miss out on foundational learning and social experiences that cannot be replicated.
To encourage better attendance this school year we have taken an approach to increase communication regarding absences and provide incentives for students that have excellent attendance. We will be sending out communications that are informational when students have reached certain attendance thresholds and to recognize students with excellent attendance. Monthly incentives will be given to students with perfect attendance for that month. Each trimester we will recognize and reward students that have 95% attendance and no more than 1 tardy. Each month we are recognizing the classroom that has the best attendance as well. Our hope is that these incentives will encourage students to come to school.
We understand that absences happen and if students are sick they should definitely stay home to recover. Page 15 and 16 of the school handbook outline reasons that students are excused from school. Reasons beyond those can be considered unexcused and could lead to possible truancy referrals. Our hope is that instead of punitive actions our proactive approach and positive incentives will encourage students to attend school and families to prioritize attendance. Thank you for your partnership in this effort!
S.O.S. Family Reading Night October 22nd
Join us for a Halloween themed Family Reading Night on October 22nd from 5:30-7:00. More details to come!
Rooms
If you are having any trouble with Rooms access or getting linked to your child's classroom please contact your child's teacher. We are off to a great start utilizing the new communication platform.
Reporting Absences
Please keep the school informed when your child will not be in school by calling 815-883-8932 option 1. Please do not just Dojo your child's teacher for an absence.