Educators Tackle the High School Crisis at ASCD 2025: New Panel Explores Bold, Inclusive Solutions

By SchoolStatus • 2 min

Attendance,Collaboration,Communication,District Success,EdTech

National Thought Leaders Come Together to Rethink What High School Can Be

Sacramento, CA—June 18, 2025—SchoolStatus, the leading provider of attendance and family engagement solutions for K-12 districts, is joining a powerhouse panel of education leaders at ASCD and ISTELive in San Antonio this July. “High School Overhaul: Educators Leading Real Change” brings together five diverse changemakers who are breaking old models and building inclusive, data-informed systems that support every student—and every educator.

Across the country, high schools are continuing to battle chronic absenteeism. Students report feeling disconnected and unseen. And educators are often working in outdated systems that weren’t designed for today’s learners.

To tackle these challenges head-on, the panel will discuss five key shifts needed to make high school a place students want to be.

Redesigning high school systems and schedules
Centering equity, well-being, and student voice
Using disaggregated data to scale success
Empowering teacher leadership and retention
Building true family partnerships to combat absenteeism

Each topic includes real-world examples, a strategic question to deepen the discussion, and time for audience reflection.

“This isn’t a conversation about fixing kids,” says Dr. Josephine Salvador, Director of the New York State Master Teacher Program. “It’s about reimagining schools so that students feel safe, known, and inspired to learn—and teachers have the support and trust to lead the way.”

Meet the Panelists

Marcus Bratton, Sr. Director, Implementation & Partnership, Colorado Education Initiative
Dr. Terry Harris, Executive Director, The Legacy Center STL
Dr. Josephine Salvador, Director, NY State Master Teacher Fellowship
Dr. Jonah Schenker, Superintendent & Chief Executive Officer, Ulster BOCES District
Moderator: Dr. Kara Stern, Director of Education, SchoolStatus

Panelists will share actionable strategies—and challenge attendees to rethink the “why” behind the systems we’ve inherited.

“This conversation reflects our mission at SchoolStatus—to turn insights into outcomes,” said Dr. Kara Stern, Director of Education at SchoolStatus. “By integrating communication tools with student data, we break down barriers and help educators create meaningful school-home connections that improve attendance, behavior, and academic performance.”

If you’re not able to attend in person, download SchoolStatus’s free attendance and family engagement resources or get in touch to discuss how this integrated suite of solutions can help you meet district goals.

Media Contact:
Annmarie Ely
Zer0 to 5ive for SchoolStatus
[email protected]
267.454.4686

SchoolStatus

SchoolStatus is transforming K-12 education with an integrated suite of solutions that provide educators and administrators with real-time student insights and district attendance trends, enabling complete visibility across all levels of the education ecosystem. Through data-driven, multi-channel communications including calling, texting, video, and print materials, SchoolStatus empowers educators to implement proactive interventions that enhance student outcomes and family engagement. With millions of successful school-home interactions, SchoolStatus leads the way in bridging the gap between schools and families across the U.S. SchoolStatus partners with thousands of districts and serves over 22 million students across all 50 states.