Attendance & Enrollment Training & Support Specialist

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is one of the largest school districts in the United States, serving over 320,000 students in 600+ schools and employing approximately 40,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has set ambitious goals to ensure that every student, in every school and every neighborhood, has access to a world-class learning experience that prepares each for success in college, career, and civic life. In order to fulfill this mission, we make three commitments to our students, their families, and all Chicagoans: academic progress, financial stability, and integrity. Six core values are embedded within these commitments - student-centered, whole child, equity, academic excellence, community partnership, and continuous learning.

Located within the Office of College & Career Success, Student Support and Engagement (OSSE) works with schools and networks to establish systems of support to keep all students on track and engaged in school. OSSE provides comprehensive support to help students become more connected and engaged in school. We provide re-engagement services for out-of-school youth; resources to eliminate barriers for students in temporary living situations; attendance and truancy guidance for families, schools, and networks; and extended learning opportunities to enhance all students' core academic experience while engaging parents and community members in school-led activities. As a part of OSSE, the Department of Attendance and Enrollment supports networks, schools, and families in addressing systemic and individual needs at multiple levels to holistically take on the root cause of absence and chronic absenteeism.

Job Summary:

The Attendance & Enrollment Training & Support Specialist will plan and facilitate training sessions for Network and school-based staff to support the accurate administration of the district's student enrollment and attendance policies, procedures, and strategies. This role will provide support to a designated cohort of schools, acting as a subject matter expert on the district's attendance and enrollment policies and supporting the ongoing implementation of these policies and related improvement initiatives. The Attendance & Enrollment Training & Support Specialist will report to the Attendance & Enrollment Training & Support Team Lead.

The Attendance & Enrollment Training & Support Specialist will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:

• Collaborate with the Senior Training Specialist and Attendance and Enrollment teams to ensure subject matter expertise related to the district's policies, procedures, strategies and improvement initiatives surrounding student attendance and enrollment
• Plan, promote, coordinate, and effectively carry out training sessions to support a designated cohort of schools, including:
  • Scheduling training at designated locations, communicating the training schedule to relevant staff, and facilitating participant registration
  • Preparing and/or delivering training materials to participating staff
  • Ensuring attendance details are accurately recorded, training satisfaction/exit surveys are completed, and data is provided to OSSE data analysts
• Facilitate comprehensive training sessions utilizing a variety of training platforms and methods (ex: in-person training, remote webinars, etc.) to present training for a diverse audience of relevant school-based staff to communicate and increase understanding of:
  • District enrollment and attendance procedures, including accurate coding of student leaves
  • Federal, state, and local law regarding enrollment and attendance
  • The causes and challenges of chronic absenteeism, truancy, and student dropout
  • Best practices for attendance tracking, improvement, enrollment practices, and mindset to support students who have barriers to arriving at school, the families of those students, and designated school staff, including but not limited to administrators, clerks, and attendance teams
• Provide timely follow-up regarding training needs, including but not limited to monitoring training completion and communicating with schools and/or internal collaborators/stakeholders
• Serve as the primary contact for the designated portfolio of school-based staff and internal stakeholders in need of clarification or support regarding the administration of the district's attendance and enrollment policies and procedures
• Actively support schools in creating a welcoming, supportive environment for new-to-the-district families by ensuring a thorough understanding of enrollment requirements, documents, and procedures
• Provide school leaders and staff with expert guidance and ongoing implementation support, including but not limited to:
  • Making regular site visits to the designated cohort of schools to proactively address and support the resolution of issues related to the administration of the attendance and enrollment policies
  • Providing regular, data-informed feedback and targeted coaching to ensure policy adherence, and support correction/improvement where indicated by trends in attendance and enrollment data
  • Working with school leaders, staff and attendance teams to provide tools and resources for reducing chronic absenteeism
  • Assisting with the implementation of tailored support plans created for the school by the Enrollment Manager and/or Attendance Manager
  • Plan and deliver additional training as needed
• Collaborate with Attendance and Enrollment colleagues to support the success of various initiatives related to improving student attendance and ensuring consistent enrollment practices
• Other duties as assigned

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university

• Minimum of (4) years of professional experience creating and facilitating training and development opportunities

• Access to transportation to travel between work sites is required
• Valid Driver's License and vehicle access preferred

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to facilitate effective, engaging training and presentations for a variety of audiences.
• Solid understanding of adult learning theories, instructional design, and effective training methodologies.
• Ability to build trusting, collaborative relationships with a variety of constituent groups, including participating schools/networks and external partners, to ensure programs operate in the most effective manner possible to produce positive results and support to schools and students
• High levels of attention to detail and effective time management skills; capable of managing multiple projects/tasks simultaneously, driving them to completion and producing high-quality results
• Capable of success whether working independently or as a collaborative team member
• Strong analytical skills, including the ability to understand and analyze data, make valid conclusions and action steps, and utilize data to inform decision-making
• Solid understanding of the student population being served and challenges that may be faced, strongly preferred
• Familiarity with challenges of chronic absenteeism, truancy and student dropout, and strategies to address them, preferred
• Understanding of educational administration systems, including student information systems and data management tools, preferred
• Knowledge of federal, state, and local laws and regulations related to student enrollment and attendance, preferred

• Establish/Maintain Chicago Residency - Employees are required to live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Chicago within six months of their CPS hire date and maintain residency throughout their employment with the district. The Chicago residency requirement does not apply to temporary/part-time positions, however, all CPS employees must be residents of Illinois.
• Be Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19 - Unless approved for a medical or religious exemption, all employees are required to be up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations, including boosters, and to submit proof of vaccination to the district within 30 days of hire. "Up-to-date" on vaccination is defined as being at least two weeks past all primary vaccine doses and any applicable boosters.