Connecticut State Department of Education

State Board of Education now accepting public comments on state charter applications until Jan. 14, 2025.

Talk Tuesdays - Student Attendance and Engagement

Overview

Talk Tuesdays are information sharing sessions that provide district and school staff an opportunity to support each other and their work to improve student attendance and engagement. Virtual sessions are a quick way to stay in touch with a network of support. One hour sessions are held every other Tuesday and engage state agency, district and school staff in an open dialogue around student attendance and engagement. Meetings are open to all working to improve engagement and attendance – school, district and community members.

The objectives of Talk Tuesdays are to:1) stay up-to-date on state policies, practices, events and issues; 2) share successes and lessons learned, 3) trouble-shoot common concerns and 4) provide overall support to each other.  Participants help identify the topics for future meetings, present problems of practice, and spend time together expanding our knowledge and capacity to engage students in school.

Register for Talk Tuesdays (one time registration for all sessions) at: https://serc.info/talktues24-25
If you have trouble registering, please contact Holli Ryan at ryan@ctserc.org.  

Talk Tuesday Sessions 2024-25

  • Special Edition Talk Tuesday on School Health and Attendance with CT Department of Public Health (DPH), October 29, 2024, Chlo-Anne Bobrowski, MSN RN, Education Manager, CSDE, Kathy Kudish, Deepa Mavani, Lynn Sosa, and Kristin Soto, DPH, and Suzanne Lavasseur, MSN, APRN, CPNP, Supervisor of Health Services, Westport Public Schools Slides | Watch recording

  • Attendance & Engagement : CT Department of Children and Families (DCF) – Careline, October 15, 2024, Lisa Daymonde, DCF Careline Director, and Vanessa Hudson, DCF Careline Program Supervisor  Slides | Watch Recording

  • College & Career Accelerator (CCA), October 1, 2024, Dan Cocchiola, Director of Career Pathways, (Ed Advance); and Jennifer Preuss, Director of Curriculum and Instruction (Thomaston Public Schools) Slides |  Watch recording

  • Multilingual and English Language Learner Families, September 17, 2024, Dr. Elizabeth Radday, Director of Research and Innovation (Ed Advance); Joanne Creedon, Director of ELL and Bilingual Services (Torrington Public Schools); Sue Fergusson, Assistant Superintendent (Torrington Public Schools); and Jenny Garcia, District Parent Educator & Bilingual Community/Family Liaison (Torrington Public Schools) Slides | Watch recording

  • Attendance & Engagement 101: Data Monitoring, August 20, 2024, Briana Hennessy, EdSight, ETLs, Data Integration, Reporting-public and Secure (CSDE), Kendra Shakir, PSIS Manager (CSDE), Kara Wanzer, Administrator for Data, Research and Assessment (Danbury Public Schools), Kelly Truchsess, Assistant Superintendent (Danbury Public Schools) Slides |Watch recording
  • Attendance & Engagement 101: Back to Basics, August 13, 2024, Caroline Calhoun, Professional Learning and Attendance Specialist & LEAP Coordinator (EdAdvance,) and Emily McClain, SRBI/Assessment Coordinator, (Hamden Public Schools) Slides | Watch recording