Summer Learning Institute 2026

Chronic absenteeism is widely recognized, but many districts struggle to translate data into effective action. In this interactive session, participants will explore a small set of high-impact, research-backed practices that have helped districts improve attendance without adding unsustainable demands on staff. Through a guided discussion of a real-world attendance scenario, attendees will examine how to identify early warning signs, engage families supportively, and align efforts across teams. Participants will leave with 1–2 concrete next steps they can take back to their district.

Teachers have a lot on their plates and are constantly asked to engage in a delicate balancing act of “getting through” the curriculum and managing student behaviors. This session explains the Education Code’s disciplinary structure as it pertains to teacher rights, with a specific focus on the legal requirement to provide other means of correction prior to most disciplinary removals. Participants will also examine trauma-informed strategies to support students while reducing the need to remove them from class. Ultimately, teachers will leave this training with a clear understanding of how to implement the discipline code of conduct without violating the rights of their students.

Discover how Madera Unified School District is transforming classrooms through trauma-informed and healing-centered practices within a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS). This session offers hands-on experiences from the district’s professional learning initiative, including calming station activities, peer coaching strategies, and tiered supports like Bounce Back and CBITS. Participants will leave with practical tools, classroom strategies, and guidance to create safe, supportive environments that promote emotional regulation, belonging, and academic success for all students.

This session will help school administrators distinguish between what constitutes a true student threat and what does not. Participants will explore the legal and practical responsibilities that follow when a threat is reported, including investigation, assessment, documentation, duty to inform, and potential disciplinary response. Through real-world examples, this session will provide guidance to help leaders respond in ways that protect school safety, support students, and remain legally sound.

This presentation will provide an overview of the most common types of court orders school districts may encounter, such as subpoenas, restraining orders, custody orders, and more.  The presentation will provide best practices for handling orders effectively and will explain the purpose of each type of order while offering practical guidance on compliance and appropriate responses.

Understanding Section 504     Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is a function of general education.  As a result, many of the general education staff responsible for implementing the Section 504 requirements lack the specialized training typically associated with special education, even though there are comparable procedural requirements as those found in special education.  This training provides an overview of the Section 504 process, including eligibility, assessment, and child find requirements.  This training is ideal for Section 504 Coordinators and any staff responsible for implementing Section 504 at school sit

This session will provide school administrators with a practical understanding of how to identify, investigate, analyze, and respond to student threats in a school setting. Participants will examine the distinction between behaviors or statements that constitute a credible threat and those that do not, helping leaders avoid both underreacting and overreacting in high-stakes situations. The session will address key components of the threat assessment process, including investigation, categorization, management, legal responsibilities, duty to inform, and potential disciplinary responses.
Through real-world examples and practical guidance, attendees will strengthen their ability to make sound decisions that protect school safety while also ensuring fair, appropriate, and legally defensible responses. This session is designed to help administrators build confidence in navigating complex student situations, understanding their responsibilities, and implementing response systems that are both supportive and responsive to risk.

This presentation will provide a general overview of legal requirements and best practices for responding to chronic absenteeism and student truancy issues, including how to address compulsory education laws with a parent/guardian and understanding the role of child find obligations and mental health supports.  The presentation will also provide an update on new laws affecting how schools handle student truancy, including changes to truancy notification letters.

This session will present a strategic framework for reducing chronic absenteeism that not only improves student engagement, but also helps districts stabilize Average Daily Attendance (ADA) and protect revenue in a time of declining enrollment and rising costs. In one Central Valley school district, this approach resulted in a 31% reduction in chronic absenteeism at the elementary level within 18 months. In a second Central Valley district, chronic absenteeism declined to 7% during the 2025–26 school year. These results were achieved through a proactive, data-driven system that combined actionable attendance data, early warning indicators, and targeted intervention strategies to identify barriers to attendance early and respond before absenteeism became entrenched. As districts face enrollment losses and inflation that continues to outpace COLA, improving attendance is one of the most immediate and practical ways to strengthen ADA, preserve funding, and maintain critical student programs and services.
This session will also highlight how districts can leverage real-time attendance systems such as Ed-Link, developed by Chris Gocke, to monitor attendance patterns, identify students at risk for chronic absenteeism, and implement timely interventions that improve student outcomes while recovering lost revenue. Participants will explore flexible attendance recovery strategies, including One-Day Independent Study, Short-Term Independent Study, before- and after-school attendance recovery opportunities, and Saturday academies. These approaches allow districts to recover instructional time, re-engage students and families, and maximize ADA in a strategic and student-centered way. Grounded in Dr. David Diehl’s field experience and informed by longitudinal research on early predictors of disengagement, this presentation demonstrates how data-informed attendance systems and targeted interventions implemented before middle school can improve attendance outcomes while helping districts respond to the financial pressures of declining enrollment and inflationary costs.