From the Superintendent
This message addresses a topic that may surprise you about our school community: the prevalence of chronic absenteeism. A few months ago, I wrote about this topic as a way to bring more awareness to incidental absenteeism, which simply is my way of explaining how a couple of absences a month can really add up and surprise students and parents when eventually it meets the state's threshold of "chronic absenteeism" by this time in the school year, or earlier in many cases. Here's what I wrote a few months ago:
Principals have been stressing the importance of attendance with more frequency over the last two years. Going back to 2015, our typical average daily attendance (ADA) was 96%, and (like other school districts) we saw a general decline during the post-pandemic years of 2021-22 and 2022-23. Last school year we began to turn a corner as ADA rose to 95%, with hopes of returning to 96% by the end of this school year.
ADA doesn't tell the whole story, though. More glaring is the chronic absenteeism data we have been tracking since 2018, the first year the state required schools to report this information. During the same post-pandemic years of 2021-23, chronic absenteeism hit 14% before dropping off to 8.3% in 2023-24. Though still a way to go in hitting the low of 6.4% during the 2018-19 year, we are working hard to partner with families in reducing the number of students who are missing large numbers of school days. We know that nothing replaces consistent daily instruction and learning experiences when it comes to academic progress, and making regular school attendance a priority for each student raises the bar for all students.
Well, this year we find a chronic absenteeism rate of 10.8%, exceeding last year's 8.3% and the year still has two months left. Please read the following information below about chronic absenteeism from the district's Director of Academic Services, Mar-E Trebilcock.
My best wishes for a restful upcoming break.
Regards,
Jeff Porter 
Congratulations to the 2025 Greely's Got Talent winners!
Tempo Tribe (Grades 3–5, 2nd place), Marta Walicka (Grades 3–5, 1st place), Van Eskandari (Grades 6–8, 2nd place), Holly O'Donahoe (Grades 6–8, 1st place), Kyra Vanni (Grades 9–12, 2nd place), and David & Christopher Gilbert (Grades 9–12, 1st place).
A round of applause to all who participated—what incredible talent we have here at MSAD #51! 
8 members of the GHS Active Minds/KyleCares club attended the premiere teen mental health conference in New England yesterday at Gillette Stadium. Co-hosted by the Patriots and The KyleCares Organization.
Notices from the Office of the Superintendent
Curriculum Corner
* Students who miss 10% or more school days per year are considered chronically absent.
* Absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year. Half the students who miss 2-4 days in September go on to miss nearly a month of school.
* Poor attendance can influence whether children read proficiently by the end of third grade.
* By 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school.
* When students improve their attendance rates, they improve their academic prospects and chances for graduating.
* 99% of our parents and guardians in MSAD #51 who responded to our stakeholder survey said they agree or strongly agree with the statement, "I believe that my child’s attendance at school matters," yet our current chronic absenteeism rate for this school year is 10.8%. That’s 242 students who have been absent more than 10% of school days this year.
Why is our chronic absenteeism over 10% when so many families value the importance of good attendance?
There may be many variables influencing our absenteeism rate, but one key variable is the “creep factor.” What is the “creep factor”? It simply means that missed days of school can creep up over time. Missing one day of school a month will result in 10 missed days in the school year, or about 6% of school days overall. Add 8 more days in there, and you’re over 10% for the year. It is easy not to notice the creep factor over the course of a whole school year because the absences are spread out over time. 
How can you check your child's absenteeism rate?
You can easily see how many school days your child has missed by logging into your parent portal on PowerSchool, selecting the quick lookup, and scrolling down to the year-to-date attendance. Click the hyperlinked number of days absent year to date, and you will see a list of dates with codes indicating whether the absence was excused or unexcused. Both count toward chronic absenteeism. You can also see excused and unexcused tardies. Chronic tardiness and chronic absenteeism often go hand in hand, so it is something to watch. We encourage you to check PowerSchool periodically to track your student’s attendance and avoid the attendance “creep factor.”
Thank you for your partnership in promoting good attendance habits. It makes a difference!
Mar-E Trebilcock
Director of Academic Support
Source: “10 Facts about School Attendance.” Attendance Works, 2025, attendanceworks.org/chronic-absence/the-problem/10-facts-about-school-attendance/.
Used with permission from Attendance Works.
IB Quarterly Report
IB Quarterly for Quarter 3 2024-2025. 
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MSAD #51 Board of Directors Information
All meetings will take place at 6:00 pm in the Gyger Room at Greely High School. For those of you unfamiliar with that room, the Gyger Room can be accessed from the GHS parking lot (the side without the electronic sign).
April 17 - Regular Meeting
Remember you can watch our meetings on YouTube LIVE (http://bit.ly/msad51livevideo)
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Budget Information 2025-26
Detailed budget information can be found on the District's website at: https://www.msad51.org/
Mark your calendar!
One Campus Project Information
For comprehensive information regarding the School Building Project, please visit the project page at: https://www.msad51.org/
What is part of the MIW renovation?
The following items are expected to be part of the MIW renovation:
* 4 additional classrooms (with corresponding staff and student bathrooms)
* Renovating existing classrooms to meet the specific academic and developmental needs for grade 4 students, including a new STEM classroom
*Office improvements to create more staff meeting space, as well as an additional staff bathroom and private student support space
* Making building envelope improvements for purposes of improving safety and building life-expectancy
* Replacing the roof (currently estimated 10 years beyond recommended life) to address frequent leaks
* Improving traffic flows for safer campus travel and increased parent drop off capacity
* Increased parking for staff and visitors
* Restoring dedicated green space within Tuttle Town, currently lost due to portables
* Laying out the framework for an outdoor community basketball hoop
Community Partners
Our Community Partners are strong supporters of various areas of the school. Without them, our students would not have many of the wonderful opportunities and experiences that they receive.
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If you would like something included in our weekly newsletter, please send a brief write up with title along with a JPEG or PNG image of your flyer (if applicable) to Melissa Porter for approval. The deadline each week is Wednesday. Any requests received after Wednesday will be reviewed for possible submission in the following week's newsletter. All approved submissions will be posted on the district's website.
Not all items in this email are MSAD #51 sponsored programs. If you need more information, please contact the group or organization that is sponsoring the event.
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