After making significant changes to the attendance policy and its enforcement last year, the administration is recognizing its success as students settle back into academic routines.

During the 2022-23 school year, more than 25% of students were chronically absent, defined as missing 10% or more of class time. In response, last year the administration tightened tardiness consequences, handing out detentions after two advisory tardies and with each subsequent tardy. By the time the first semester came to a close, the number of chronically absent students had plummeted to 9%.

This year, the school is looking to ride the wave of that success with a few adjustments to consequence procedures.

“We recognized that we were happy with how the increase in student attendance rate had a positive effect on our culture here,” Associate Principal of Student Service Chris Mitchell said.

The updated Attendance Handbook outlines the policies for the school year. For example, instead of receiving morning detention after two advisery tardies, students are allowed four per quarter, at which point they will receive after school detentions with each subsequent violation.

Another change is the relaxing of the thresholds for each category of absenteeism. Students will receive varying levels of staff intervention at eight, 15, and 21 absences from any one of their classes, with consequences ranging from adviser chats, restricted free periods, detention, and in the most extreme cases, lack of class credit or removal from extracurricular activities. One of the key aspects in implementing this tiered approach is the Graduating Class Teams (GCTs), introduced last year to help address attendance issues. 

“The idea behind that is that you’ll have a core group of staff members from your assistant principal to your adviser chairs to members in social work and psychology and post-high school counseling that will travel with you throughout your career,” said Mitchell, who coordinates with the GCTs at both campuses.

GCTs meet regularly to discuss student progress and connect with the New Trier Parents’ Association. The hope, said Mitchell, is that the teams provide familiar faces for students and parents to receive support from through their time at New Trier.

The school will continue to track absence data and make adjustments as needed. Assistant Principal of the GCT of the class of 2025 Sarah Struebing noted that a standing committee of administrators meets at least twice per year to analyze data and review attendance policy.

“That’s actually how some of the tweaks came as that larger committee met again last year, looked at the data, looked at what we’ve been doing, and gave us some suggestions,” she said.

The school has also placed new emphasis on attendance procedures through signage directing students to sign-in and sign-out points and through adviser chair visits to adviser rooms. Attendance requirements have been synthesized into a Family Attendance Roadmap to help students and families navigate the extensive language of the handbook. It’s all part of the extensive network of student support, said Mitchell.

“Some people hear ‘Student Services’ and ‘Graduating Class Team’ and think of when kids need help in school or struggle with attendance,” he said. Instead, he added, “It’s really about the entire experience.”