Troy Middle School Purple & Gold Attendance Court
Six students who have poor attendance were chosen for this practice. For 12 weeks, we met every Thursday from 7:30-8:45 a.m. Several community members were present, including the juvenile officer, counselors from Preferred Family Health Care, the school Resource Officer, parents, and all three school counselors. First, we ate breakfast and talked with the kids. At 7:45 a.m., our Juvenile Judge arrived, and we stood to greet him. The students were called to meet with the judge individually. They discussed the prior week's attendance, academic concerns, and any other issues that needed to be addressed. They set goals for the week with the judge and signed a contract agreeing to meet them. Finally, the judge praised the student in front of the group for something positive they have done. Then, the judge called the next student. When the students were not meeting with the judge, they participated in a small group session. We used the Junior Achievement curriculum or created a lesson to address any issues. Some weeks we focused on making up homework. Perhaps the best results were the relationships the kids built with the school staff. In group one, four out of six students dramatically increased their attendance.