Boosting school attendance from underserved communities
Submitted by Rohit Kulkarni
Like many districts in California, Newark schools saw a significant drop in attendance and enrollment during the pandemic. Public school enrollment in Newark dropped by 1,000 students over two years during the pandemic, impacting vital programs.
“It has impacted our funding, as fewer students mean fewer dollars coming in,” says Ofelia Melero, coordinator for expanded learning and childcare in the district. “It has impacted our ability to run special programs as those require extra staffing.”
Lincoln Elementary, with roughly 285 students, exemplifies these challenges. Principal Amanda Golliher notes a decrease in overall family engagement. “On top of lowering enrollment that impacts funding, we are seeing families more likely to take their kids on vacation because they do not prioritize daily attendance. They keep kids home for minor sniffles.”
According to Ed Source, in California, the percentage of chronically absent students rose sharply from 12.1% before the pandemic (2018-19) to 30% by 2021-22. Nationally, since the pandemic began, the number of chronically absent students nearly doubled to approximately 13.6 million, including 1.8 million in California, as reported by Stanford University in collaboration with The Associated Press. Chronic absence is defined as missing 10% or more of the school year, equivalent to about one month of missed school days in a typical 180-day calendar year.
Newark’s demographics also play a part. Newark Unified District enrolls 4,955 elementary students, with nearly 44% socio-economically disadvantaged, over 22% English learners, and 0.2% foster youth. Additionally, more than half the students are from Spanish-speaking families.
A beacon of hope came last year when Sewa International, a Hindu faith-based nonprofit, partnered with AmeriCorps to launch the ASPIRE program at Lincoln Elementary. ASPIRE (Achieving Students Progress, Instilling Resilience, and Excellence) is an after-school program—focused on math, English language, arts, and enrichment—that provides supplementary language intervention and helps improve academic performance for children from kindergarten to sixth grade. Most students come from underserved, refugee and immigrant communities.
Partnering with Sewa allows the school to offer ASPIRE programs at minimal cost to all students, regardless of socio-economic background, serving as a significant motivator for low-income families to engage more with the school. “It’s not just intervention. Yes, we have learning gaps but we also have students who are farther ahead, and they need the support too. With ASPIRE’s help, we can do more small groups and provide that extra push,” says Golliher. Lincoln Elementary is seeing a real positive impact on their test scores, attendance and the overall general feeling of community.
Results are promising. Lincoln has seen a significant rise in attendance and test scores. “Our students are growing academically and socially,” Golliher reports. Beyond core subjects, ASPIRE offers enrichment activities like robotics and geography, further boosting engagement.
The program has expanded to other Newark schools like Coyote Hills and Schilling Elementary, with positive feedback from parents and students noting improved grades, increased confidence and faster integration into the American schooling system.
Currently, the district is partnering with Sewa’s ASPIRE to offer a comprehensive 30-day summer program to jumpstart the next school year by getting more kids interested in after-school activities. “Plans include student competitions and attracting volunteers with diverse skillsets to introduce students to new career paths,” says Sudha Prabhunandan, who heads Sewa’s ASPIRE program in the Newark school district.
Sewa’s ASPIRE program exemplifies successful nonprofit-government partnerships addressing local community needs. Currently active in immigrant communities across major cities like Atlanta, Houston and the San Francisco Bay Area, ASPIRE aims to expand within the Newark Unified District and to schools throughout the Bay Area. Sewa International is actively seeking corporate partners who share their vision to enhance community benefits through collaboration.
ASPIRE
