Dr. Carolyn Gentle-Genitty, Inaugural Dean of Founder’s College at Butler University, and Dr. Francis Bowen, Butler University Assistant Professor of Data Analytics and Business Intelligence, hosted five international researchers from De Berkenschutse (The Netherlands) on the Butler campus this month to learn more about their efforts to address chronic absenteeism, specifically how they are making a global impact through Fight for Life Foundation’s Building Dreams. The international team of researchers and practitioners, who expressed a desire to make similar impacts in their country, enjoyed a campus tour and connected with two of Butler’s own international students: Joost de Schutter and Vygo Verkooijen, North Brabant, Netherlands, and spent time with Assistant Professor Monique Harris of Butler’s College of Education. They were joined by members of the Fight for Life Foundation team and Dr. Tihesha Henderson, Founder and Executive Director of Sankofa School of Success.

Why Butler? Chronic Absenteeism & the Butler Connection

According to the U.S. Department of Education, chronic absenteeism includes all absences: excused (like college visits and sickness) as well as unexcused (typically defined as missing at least 10 percent of school days, or 18 days in a year, for any reason). As of the 2021-2022 school year, more than 14 million students nationwide were chronically absent, posing serious implications for students’ overall academic success and wellbeing.

Gentle-Genitty is a social work and youth development scholar, and is also a global researcher who explores school attendance and truancy. She has authored several award-winning publications and led multiple presentations on the topic. In fact, when the Interim Study Committee on Education heard about the most recent school attendance data from the Indiana Department of Education, Gentle-Genitty was amongst a handful of expert witnesses asked to testify. Dr. Francis Bowen, Butler University Assistant Professor of Data Analytics and Business Intelligence, has also co-authored several peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, along with Dr. Gentle-Genitty, about using data to understand underlying issues around absenteeism, social, emotional learning (SEL), and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Their award winning work has played a pivotal role in helping the Fight for Life Foundation create its evidence-based Building Dreams platform, which is a behavioral health Software as a Service (SaaS) technology infused with the Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS).

“Absent students are unable to join college pathways,” Gentle-Genitty said. “Removing barriers, like that of attendance and absenteeism in K-12, helps foster Indiana’s college going culture. As Inaugural Dean and absenteeism researcher, Founder’s College sees our role in reducing barriers, removing the randomness of student success, and ensuring equity and excellence co-exist. The work extends from K-12 to college.”

Fight for Life Foundation was founded in 2007 by former Indianapolis Colts cornerback Marlin Jackson. It is a not-for-profit organization that began as a learning curriculum and lessons developed for football camps. It has since evolved into a not-for-profit organization with a mission of helping deserving but underserved youth develop the social and emotional qualities needed to be successful. Building Dreams is its cornerstone program to help students connect behavioral symptoms to the underlying condition of their well-being. It helps students strengthen the coping mechanisms that are central to their academic success and protective of their mental and emotional health.

Machine Learning 

During the meeting, Fight for Life staff, including Anna Sutter (also a Butler University alum), and the Butler team explored Building Dreams with the researchers. Collectively, the group discussed the role of data in order to support children, educators, and families. Dr. Tihesha Henderson, Sankofa School of Success Founder and Executive Director, also shared first hand insight about how her school uses Building Dreams and the positive impact they’ve seen. This includes academic improvements, interventions, new preventative processes and needs met, as a result of Building Dreams.

In November 2022, Gentle-Genitty and Bowen’s machine learning approach (written in collaboration with Jackson) used more than 20,000 recorded behaviors in Building Dreams to train a classifier with 90.2 percent accuracy and uncovered a major underlying factor directly affecting absenteeism: the importance of peer relationships. This is an important finding and provided data-driven support for the fundamental idea that peer relationships are a critical factor affecting absenteeism. (Read the report here)

International researchers shared that, in The Netherlands, data is often limited or inaccessible, which can limit schools’ ability to understand absenteeism, create solutions to intervene, and meet needs.

According to online publication I Am Expat, “With both the Dutch healthcare system and the education sector facing severe staff shortages, schools and teachers don’t always notice when their students are struggling, and young people are often unable to get the support and care they need in order to feel like they can participate in class and other school and social activities.”

It’s no secret that this work takes a comprehensive, holistic approach in order to understand underlying factors. However the solutions that look at both in-school and out-of-school factors are few. That’s why Building Dreams is a rare, impactful tool that uses machine learning.

“The basis of support is understanding,” Bowen said. “In machine learning, understanding happens through assimilated knowledge and is centered on the pillars of big data: data volume, value, variety, velocity, and veracity. When applied in an educational setting, we are enabling personalized learning experiences, early intervention for at-risk students, and data-driven decision-making that enhances educational outcomes for all. I am passionate about sharing insights hidden in data and exploring different techniques to uncover them. Through Building Dreams, we can help students, educators, and families connect the dots, especially around absenteeism. And that is special.”

Relationships matter.

The group also discussed a few commonalities across the globe, such as the role of PBIS, and how that can help strengthen the community feel at school. Henderson and the Fight for Life team shared examples of how they use positive reinforcements (including celebrations) to encourage positive behavior and relationships. Dr. Monique Harris, Butler University Assistant Professor, MTSS, Socio-emotional learning, and Disability in Education, also joined the conversation.

“I often say this work takes a village because it’s true,” Jackson said. “I am also honored to work alongside Dr. Gentle-Genitty, Dr. Bowen, Dr. Henderson, committed organizations, and countless others, including schools and community organizations, to help youth fight for life.” 

While fewer Indiana students are chronically absent from school, it’s still an issue for which schools and organizations across the globe are trying to understand the causes and create solutions to intervene. And for several Indianapolis schools, Building Dreams is one of those solutions. Learn more about Fight for Life Foundation’s Building Dreams here.