What is SARB? - West Fargo Public Schools

What is SARB
The SARB is a panel composed of
school and community representatives
who meet regularly to combine their
expertise and maximize their resources
in an effort to develop solutions to
persistent school attendance concerns.
Students are referred to the SARB by
their home school when attendance
problems have not been resolved
through the usual avenues of
classroom, school, and district
interventions.
The SARB aims to work cooperatively
with students and families to alleviate
the factors that interfere with regular
school attendance. However, if
students and/or parents decline to work
with the SARB and the student
continues to be absent or tardy from
school, the SARB will take the
necessary steps to ensure enforcement
of compulsory attendance laws.
Why is my child being
referred to SARB
Poor attendance is frequently the first
sign that a student is on the road to
school difficulty and possibly dropping
out. Each day or hour a student misses
school results in gaps in their
education, an education that is ever
more necessary in our constantly
changing society.
The State of North Dakota recognizes
the importance of education and has
passed laws requiring all school-age
children to attend school regularly.
Your child has missed more school
than is acceptable, and the situation
does not appear to be improving
adequately as a result of school
interventions.
Therefore, your student has been
referred to the SARB in an effort to
find a more effective solution.
How does it operate
When a student exceeds an acceptable
number of absences, the student’s
school attempts to intervene to improve
the student’s attendance. When these
attempts don’t result in significant
improvement, the school refers the
student to the SARB.
A SARB composed of school personnel
meets first to review the referral.
Depending on circumstances, this
group may recommend further school
interventions or may refer the student
directly to the community SARB.
The community SARB meets when
needed to discuss referrals. Once the
SARB determines which agency(s)
needs to work with the family, they will
be contacted by that agency.
Prior to the first SARB meeting,
parents/guardians must sign a release of
information. If the family chooses not
to sign, the case will be turned over
directly to social services and/or
juvenile court.

Who is on the SARB
The SARB is composed of
representatives of a variety of agencies
who work with students and their
families. The school district SARB
includes district administrators,
building principals, counselors, school
psychologists, school nurses, student
success coordinator and ELL
personnel.
Members of the community SARB
represent the following agencies:
Juvenile Court
Cass County Social Services
Youth Court
Youth Works
Fargo Cass Public Health
West Fargo Public Schools
North Dakota Century Code 15.1-20-01
Any person having responsibility for a
child between the ages of seven and
sixteen years shall ensure that the child
is in attendance at a public school for
the duration of each school year.
If a person enrolls a child of age six in
a public school, the person shall ensure
that the child is in attendance at the
public school for the duration of each
school year. The person may withdraw
a child of age six from the public
school. However, once the child is
withdrawn, the person may not reenroll
the child until the following school
year. This subsection does not apply if
the reason for the withdrawal is the
child's relocation to another school
district.
For further information on the West
Fargo Public School SARB, contact,
Thomas Gravel at 356-2008 or Jerry
Standifer at 499-1609