Community Update
October 28, 2022
Dear Erie High School Families,

October has been a busy and exciting month at Erie High School.  I am proud of the great learning demonstrated by our students each day and uplifted by the outstanding achievements we have seen by our students in the arts, performing arts, and athletics.  

In particular today, I would like to recognize the Erie High School softball team, who, under the leadership of Coach Tobin Echohawk, made it all the way to the CHSAA Class 5A state semifinals last weekend.  In just their first year at the 5A level, the Erie Tigers maintained an undefeated record within the state of Colorado all the way through the state semifinals, where they lost a close game 3-2 to the eventual state champion, Columbine High School.  This remarkable group of student-athletes shined throughout the fall season, and I am proud of their great achievements throughout the year!

At the start of the year, I asked our students, faculty, staff, and families to renew their commitment to consistent attendance in school.  I am grateful to all of our community members for embracing this common objective, as we can all agree that our students cannot thrive in school without consistent attendance.  I am happy to report that we have seen a significant improvement in student attendance in the 2022-2023 school year as compared to the previous two school years.

School Year	Attendance Rate	Chronic Absenteeism
2020-2021	93.17%	20.12%
2021-2022	91.23%	29.36%
2022-2023 *as of 10/26/22	93.8%	17.1%

Attendance rate measures the percentage of class periods attended throughout our entire student body, and chronic absenteeism measures the percentage of students that have missed 10% or more of the school days in the 2022-2023 school year.

This improved student attendance is the result of many factors, but I am particularly grateful to our students, faculty, staff, and families for committing to support our goals of improved student attendance this school year.  

While school attendance is a high priority, so is the health and well-being of our students, staff, and community members.  As we have entered cold and flu season, it is important that students and staff members that are sick stay home from school.  We ask all families to report student absences in a timely fashion by phone or email and thank you for your partnership in supporting your student in attending school when they are not sick.

Within the auspices of attendance, our school faculty, administration, and safety team have seen an increase in student tardiness, particularly at the start of the school day.  I ask our families for your partnership in supporting your child(ren) to seek consistent on-time arrival to school each day and sustained punctuality to subsequent blocks during the school day.  We all understand the importance in developing our mindfulness for punctuality – as a school community, it is important that we impart this wisdom to our students.  I sincerely appreciate any efforts you can make to support and encourage your child(ren) to be on time to school on a consistent basis.

Preparation for Inclement Weather
We have entered the season for inclement weather in Colorado, and this inclement weather can impact our school day.  Our St. Vrain Valley School District leadership and operations teams are thoughtful and judicious in their response to inclement weather, and in particular, how we at the school site will respond to significant winter weather.  As we prepare for the winter season, I encourage our Erie High School students, staff, and families to familiarize themselves with the SVVSD Inclement Weather plan. 

Thank you for your ongoing and continued support of your child(ren) and Erie High School.  With your partnership and support, we have an incredible opportunity to prepare our students for happy, full, and successful futures!

Sincerely,
Josh Griffin
Erie High School Principal