May 18, 2026 – IMESD

Eleven school teams gathered at IMESD on May 18th for the fourth and final FOT coaching session of the year — a full-day, collaborative inquiry designed to deepen their collective practice and celebrate a year's worth of hard work on behalf of freshmen students across the region. The day was focused on two interconnected learning intentions: to showcase how teams engaged in collaborative inquiry aimed at increasing the percentage of Freshmen On Track (FOT) to graduate during the 2-25-2026 school year, and to give each district team the opportunity to share and reflect on their year-long inquiry alongside peers from across the region.

The morning opened with team-building and a grounding in shared purpose before moving into a deep dive on FOT best practices — covering everything from team structures and student voice data to chronic absenteeism, academic deficiencies, and engagement. A Share Fair in late morning gave participants a chance to trade insights on late work and retake policies, credit recovery platforms, buy-in strategies, and the emerging role of AI in school systems. After lunch, the heart of the day arrived: school presentations and feedback. Each team's inquiry question reflects a distinctive local context — yet together they form a powerful regional commitment to belonging, attendance, and academic access.

Baker

Focused on reducing D and F grades by establishing common retake and late-work policies across core classrooms, paired with ongoing academic data monitoring and student feedback loops.

Elgin

Tackled chronic absenteeism by building clearer policies, concrete support systems, and investing in the positive relationships that make students want to show up.

Ione

Explored the intersection of MTSS and Clarity frameworks to sharpen their approach to student support and intervention systems.

Irrigon

Worked to ensure instruction is both rigorous and vertically aligned across departments — so students build on a coherent foundation as they move through high school.

LaGrande

Took a proactive, first-day-of-school approach to attendance — building the habit of showing up before absenteeism has a chance to take hold.

Milton-Freewater

Focused on innovation and relationship-building as the twin engines for improving student attendance and keeping chronic absenteeism from taking root.

Nixyaawii

Mirrored LaGrande's proactive attendance strategy — addressing the problem at the very start of the school year with innovative, culturally grounded approaches.

Pendleton High School

Set out to shift the culture around attendance — working to get students, staff, and families to genuinely value showing up, starting on day one.

Morrow County

Centered their work on uniting staff around a shared goal: improving student relationships as a direct lever for student ownership of their own attendance.

Stanfield

Committed to consistent, solution-focused strategies that build student belonging throughout the school year — not just during crisis moments.

Athena-Weston

Placed student belonging and connection at the center of their attendance work — particularly for students who feel unseen, unvalued, or disengaged from school culture.

The session closed with optimistic closure — a survey, IMESD next steps, and a collective moment to name one hopeful shift each team carried into the room. The energy of the day reflected what's possible when schools across a region commit not just to their own students, but to learning from one another. Participants also named what they want to explore further: deeper dives into retakes and late work, strategies for motivating students amid cycles of poverty, credit recovery platforms, and practical systems for moving resistant staff. The work continues — with a shared belief that every freshman deserves a path to graduation.