Model SARB Recognition Program Invitation Letter

Letter Head: Tom Torlakson, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, California Department of Education

September 10, 2012

Dear School Attendance Review Board Chairpersons:

MODEL SCHOOL ATTENDANCE REVIEW BOARD RECOGNITION PROGRAM 2012–13

You are cordially invited to participate in the Model School Attendance Review Board (SARB) Recognition Program sponsored by the California Department of Education (CDE) in cooperation with the California Association of Supervisors of Child Welfare and Attendance (CASCWA).

The Model SARB Recognition Program identifies and recognizes outstanding and innovative results-based school attendance improvement programs at the district or county level that serve as models for other SARBs in the state. County SARBs that provide consultant services and coordination of services are scored differently than local (district) SARBs, which handle student referrals.

The CDE encourages SARBs that meet the eligibility criteria, including measuring and reporting outcomes, to submit an application to the Model SARB Recognition Program. For more information about the importance of measuring and reporting outcomes, including research presented at my recent policy forum on chronic absences, please refer to the Attendance Works Web page at http://www.attendanceworks.org/california-forum-taking-attendance-seriously/.

The self-nomination application for the 2012–13 Model SARB Recognition Program is available on the CDE School Attendance Review Boards Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ai/sb. Awards may be given for programs that are outstanding in specific content areas, as well as programs that are exemplary in all content areas. Three letters of support must be included with all applications for local SARBs, but more than three letters may be submitted for county SARBs. Letters of support can be written by parents, guardians, caregivers, and students who have participated in SARB meetings, by local SARB members, or by others familiar with the effectiveness of the program.

Awards will be presented to successful Model SARB Recognition Program applicants at the annual CASCWA Conference in Sacramento County on April 18–19, 2013.

If you have any questions regarding this subject, please contact David Kopperud, Education Programs Consultant, Educational Options, Student Support, and American Indian Education Office, by phone at 916-323-1028 or by e-mail at dkopperud@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

[ORIGINAL SIGNED BY]

Tom Torlakson

TT:dk

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