donald.norton@estill.kyschools.us
Welcome to the 2021-2022 school year! We have been working hard all summer to plan for a safe opening of school and to implement best practices to mitigate the risks associated with Covid-19. A strong emphasis will be placed on student’s social emotional learning as we implement research based strategies in all of our K-12 classrooms.
Estill County Schools are such a special place to learn and grow. Our students are kind, compassionate, and inquisitive. Together with our dedicated staff, we strive to make connections with students to help them feel valued, accepted, and safe. As Engineers, we believe that every child in Estill County has a destiny to accomplish something great in their life and in the lives of others! This will continue to guide our mission to provide the educational environment through which “Every Child Succeeds.”
For the district to achieve its goals and strategies for ensuring the success of all students, it is imperative that students be in attendance every day. I want to partner with families and schools to help reduce any barriers preventing students from being in school. Part of this partnership is being able to work with local agencies to provide families with the services they might need—physical, social, or emotional. Also, since Kentucky’s compulsory attendance law defines a truant as any student having three unexcused absences—and a habitual truant as any student having six or more unexcused absences— I have the responsibility of investigating cases of nonattendance and enforcing all aspects of state and federal attendance laws. I will be making home visits to those students not in compliance with attendance policy and working closely with Child Protective Services (CPS), court designated workers, and family court to ensure students remain in school.
Attending school has a huge impact on a student’s academic success starting in kindergarten and continuing through high school. Even as students grow older and more independent, families play a key role in making sure students get to school safely every day. It’s important that all parties involved understand why attendance is important for success in school and in life. The impact of absenteeism on academics and graduation rate is well documented. Estill County is committed to reducing student absences regardless of the reason. Students who attend school today will succeed tomorrow.
For those students identified as habitual truants both the student and their families may be enrolled in a Truancy Diversion Program. The Truancy Diversion Committee is a team that works to improve the attendance of identified students and to interrupt patterns of chronic absences. The Truancy Diversion team brings a strengths-based approach and provides a setting where all participants work together to identify strategies that will improve the student’s attendance, addressing the needs of the whole child and the individual root causes of attendance issues.
The "No Pass/No Drive" statute results in the denial of the school compliance verification form or the revocation of a student's driver’s license for:
(1) academic deficiency
(2) dropping out of school
(3) missing 9 or more unexcused absences in one semester.
I am available and happy to discuss what we can do to help your student! Please don’t hesitate to call me at 606-723-2181.
Donald Norton
Director of Pupil Personnel