$1.9-million pilot project aims to bolster school attendance

Attendance support workers will find students and solutions

student needs to get back into school. This is not about consequences and punishment, this is about engaging students.”

Bruce stressed there would be many solutions the worker would be able to offer in trying to get that student back into class, ranging from making sure they are fed if they are hungry, have boots to wear in winter or an alarm clock to wake up in the morning, along with many other options.

“And they would be able to link students and families to necessary community supports and school supports that are available.”

Those hired for the jobs will be teachers or those able to be certified as such, but they will not be expected to do both. The attendance support worker jobs will be full time.

“We’re looking for boards to hire quite quickly and we are looking for this to begin in the new year,” Bruce said.

School boards will nominate schools to take part in the pilot projects, with the nominations reviewed by the Education Department and the NSTU. The pilot will run until June 2019.