Partner Spotlight: Niagara Falls City School District, New York

Background:

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Located along the iconic American Falls, Niagara Falls City School District serves a diverse and resilient community of learners. Under the leadership of a superintendent deeply committed to student success, attendance has been a top priority since 2018. Stan Wojton, Principal on Special Assignment, shares more about how, even with a history of prioritizing this work, the district still faced an uphill battle in re-engaging students and families after the pandemic.

The Challenge: Rebuilding Attendance After the Pandemic

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The district launched a dedicated attendance committee in 2018 and began exploring new strategies to ensure every student showed up ready to learn, including hiring 18 social workers. The district made strong early progress on attendance by examining attendance codes, revamping communications, and building awareness—but then the pandemic hit. Like districts across the country, Niagara Falls faced a steep climb to re-engage students in full-day, in-person learning.

“What we quickly realized post-COVID was that students weren’t returning at the pace we hoped,” said Stan. They returned to their efforts with communications, community engagement events, and building relationships. “It certainly helped, but we wanted and we needed more.”

The Solution: Proactive Outreach, Trusted Adults, and Data-Driven Support

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In search of additional capacity and tools, Niagara Falls turned to EveryDay Labs. “We have these social workers and a team of 20 plus counselors in place, district wide, that were there to help the students. What EveryDay Labs allowed us to do is stop manually going through the attendance records and spreadsheets to identify those groups and cohorts and monitor progress. That alone takes time. EveryDay Labs allowed us to free up that time, instead the team is taking the time to make those parent phone calls, to make those home visits, and really get those children in school and receive the help and support that they need,” shared Stan.

EveryDay Labs’ personalized nudges—delivered via mail and text—also helped shift the district’s approach from reactive to proactive. “Before, we were only sending letters to students who were already chronically absent. With EveryDay Labs, we’re reaching families much earlier, before things snowball,” Stan explained.

At first, the change required some adjustment. “Families were wondering why they were getting these letters—especially post-COVID. We had to work hard to communicate that this wasn’t punitive—it was supportive,” said Stan. Through intentional messaging, the district successfully reframed the narrative. “Now families understand we’re here to help.”

Social workers now have the time and tools to meet families where they are. “Some families haven’t had great experiences with schools in the past. Now they have someone they trust—someone who shows up, listens, and helps.”‍

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The partnership also freed up capacity for deeper internal improvements. “We used to have 78 different attendance codes in our system,” said Stan. “After our attendance audit, we streamlined that to 28 and rolled out training for principals, secretaries, and teachers. Now, when a student transfers classrooms, everyone knows what the codes mean and how many days have been missed. We’re all on the same page.”

The Results: Better Attendance, Broader Impact

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Since launching its partnership with EveryDay Labs, Niagara Falls has seen steady improvement in both chronic absenteeism and average daily attendance. But Stan says the impact goes beyond the numbers.

“We’re now better able to align attendance with our academic and social-emotional supports. If a student has missed 50 days, they’re going to be behind—plain and simple. Our special education department now uses attendance data to distinguish between learning loss due to absenteeism and true disabilities.”

“Attendance is the umbrella,” said Stan. “If they’re not in school, we can’t support them. It’s as simple as that.”‍

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Stan’s advice for other districts considering a partnership: “Sign up.” But beyond that, he encourages leaders to take a deep dive into how EveryDay Labs can amplify what’s already working. “Traditional approaches alone aren’t enough anymore. EveryDay Labs frees up your counselors and social workers so they can do the work that truly moves the needle.”

And it’s not just the tools—it’s the people. “The EveryDay Labs team is incredible. They’re responsive, professional, and always willing to help,” said Stan. “From full-district trainings to individualized professional learning sessions for specific schools, they meet us where we are and help us move forward.”

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