AN ACT to establish a pilot program to test the use of data‑driven attendance intervention systems to reduce chronic absenteeism.

Whereas, chronic absenteeism in North Carolina has reached approximately 25 percent of enrolled public school students, meaning one in four students misses at least 10 percent of instructional days; and

Whereas, chronic absenteeism is a leading indicator of academic underperformance, increased remediation costs, and reduced graduation rates; and

Whereas, early intervention and real‑time attendance monitoring systems have demonstrated measurable improvements in student attendance and reductions in chronic absenteeism; and

Whereas, improving attendance increases the effective utilization of the State's per pupil investment and reduces downstream costs associated with remediation, intervention services, and dropout recovery; Now, therefore,

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  Purpose. – The Department of Public Instruction shall establish the Student Attendance Early Intervention Pilot Program (Program) to implement a data‑driven attendance intervention system in select public schools to reduce chronic absenteeism. The Program shall prioritize implementation within a single public school unit to ensure fidelity of implementation, clear accountability, and operational efficiency. The Program shall begin with the 2026‑2027 fiscal year and conclude with the 2027‑2028 fiscal year.

SECTION 1.(b)  Selection of Schools. – All public school units may apply to participate in the Program. By September 1, 2026, the Department shall select one public school unit, and the schools within that public school unit, that will participate in the Program in accordance with the following:

(1)        The Program shall cover no more than 15,000 students combined across all selected schools.

(2)        The schools selected shall demonstrate diversity in student demographics, including socioeconomic status, geography, and school‑level characteristics sufficient to support a representative pilot.

(3)        The Department shall prioritize selecting schools that have a chronic absenteeism rate above the state average.

(4)        The Department shall consider the public school unit's and school's technical readiness, staffing capacity, and ability to meet implementation time lines, including coordination requirements necessary for successful program deployment.

SECTION 1.(c)  Selection of Vendor. – The Department shall select a vendor to work with the schools in the Program. The vendor shall offer, within a unified, purpose‑built, scalable platform, a research‑proven attendance intervention solution, including tiered evidence‑based workflows, automated bidirectional family engagement, longitudinal documentation of outreach and supports, and statewide reporting and monitoring across selected schools. The Department shall select a participating vendor by September 15, 2026.

SECTION 1.(d)  Implementation Requirements. – Selected public school units and schools shall work with the selected vendor to implement the Program beginning no later than January 1, 2027. To implement the Program, the selected public school units, schools, and vendor shall work together to do all of the following:

(1)        Designate a local program coordinator.

(2)        Implement an attendance system that includes all of the following:

a.         Real‑time attendance monitoring and early warning indicators.

b.         Automated, two‑way communication with families, including multilingual capability.

c.         Intervention protocols aligned with a multitiered system of supports (MTSS), including intervention workflows for at‑risk students.

d.         Data dashboards for educators and administrators.

e.         Documentation and compliance tracking aligned with State attendance policies.

f.          Safeguards for data privacy in compliance with State and federal laws.

(3)        Provide training to staff on system usage and intervention strategies.

SECTION 1.(e)  Funding. – There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction the sum of seventy‑five thousand dollars ($75,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2026‑2027 fiscal year to implement the Student Attendance Early Intervention Pilot Program, as authorized by this act. The Department may either contract with a selected vendor to provide services to selected public school units or allocate funds to selected public school units for the public school units or schools to contract with the selected vendor. Funds appropriated by this act shall not revert at the end of the 2026‑2027 fiscal year but instead shall remain available until June 30, 2028. The Department and selected public school units may supplement State funds for the Program with eligible federal or philanthropic funding streams.

SECTION 1.(f)  Use of Funds. – Funds appropriated for the Program may be used for any of the following purposes:

(1)        Technology acquisition and licensing.

(2)        Implementation and integration services.

(3)        Training and professional development.

(4)        Program administration and evaluation.

SECTION 1.(g)  School Reporting. – Program implementation shall align with the technical architecture of the selected solution, including integration with a single student information system (SIS) in the participating public school unit. Reporting shall be conducted at the public school unit and school level, and the Department shall aggregate results across participating schools for evaluation purposes. A single, statewide data instance across multiple student information systems shall not be required.

SECTION 1.(h)  Reporting. – No later than February 1, 2028, the Department shall report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee on the following:

(1)        Measurable reductions in chronic absenteeism due to the Program.

(2)        Improved student engagement and attendance consistency while participating in the Program.

(3)        Operational efficiencies provided by the Program for school staff.

(4)        Any recommendations on statewide expansion of the Program, long‑term funding strategies, and integrating statewide data systems and longitudinal data initiatives into the Program.

(5)        Any other information the Department feels relevant to evaluating the effectiveness of the Program.

SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2026.