First Faces & SART
Correcting barriers — listen first, then formalize support
When attendance is not improving and the barrier looks like belief, trust, welcome, or understanding, the work is not another notice — it is how students and families actually experience us. First Faces is how we find out. SART is how we formalize what we learn.
Campus look-for chart — Connection before correction
Every arrival is an opportunity for connection. Every return is an opportunity for reconnection.
1. Welcome
Does this student know we are glad they are here?
Adults visible where students arrive; greetings by name; late and returning students welcomed without embarrassment.
2. Connect
Does this student have someone here who notices them?
Returning students recognized; changes in routine or mood noticed; connection before correction.
3. Discover
Do we know what may be getting in the way?
Curious, private questions; family invited into problem-solving; barrier separated from behavior.
4. Respond
Did what we learned lead to action?
Staff know where concerns go; support has an owner; the student never has to retell the story.
A warm greeting without follow-through is kindness. A warm greeting + noticing + action is an attendance system.
The first 30 seconds
Return-to-school micro-protocol for any adult.
- 1Welcome: “Good to see you.”
- 2Reconnect: “We’re glad you’re here.”
- 3Notice: “I noticed you’ve been gone a few days.” (when appropriate)
- 4Open the door: “Is everything okay, or is there anything we can help with?”
Staff don’t have to solve it — notice, listen, connect: “Thank you for telling me. I’m going to connect you with someone who may be able to help.”
Connection pathway
The system carries the information forward — not the child.
- Student arrives or returns
↓
- Positive welcome
↓
- Concern or disclosed barrier? No → keep connecting. Yes → brief private conversation
↓
- Support needed? No → welcome back + monitor. Yes → send through the attendance support pathway
↓
- Assigned adult follows up
↓
- Barrier and support documented
↓
- Attendance monitored
The First Faces protocol
RAISE Practice 3b — an empathy interview, not a lecture.
Choose the 3–6 students, families, or small group whose attendance story you understand least — not just the loudest cases.
Ask how arrival, late entry, return from absence, and contact from school actually feel. Voluntary, warm, no leading.
Cluster what you heard into themes about welcome, trust, access, and how the attendance message lands.
Test one warm-welcome or first-contact change adults can actually deliver — for 10 instructional days.
Check attendance, their response, and whether the message now feels useful. Keep, adjust, add support, or formalize through SART.
Ground rules: the interview is voluntary and the student is never in trouble. Ask open questions and don’t lead toward what you assume. Take detailed notes in their words. This is about the conditions we create, not their character.
Student question bank
Grades 5–12 — adapt the wording to the student’s age.
- “Tell me about the last time someone at school made you feel welcomed.”
- “Walk me through coming to school today — who was the first adult you saw?”
- “Walk me through coming back after you were absent. What did that feel like?”
- “Think about the last time you came in late. What happened when you walked in?”
- “What is it like to go through the office, the bus, or the building in the morning?”
- “Who or where feels friendly to you at school? Who or where doesn’t?”
Family question bank
Same interview — from the family’s side of the counter.
- “Tell me about the last time someone at school made you feel welcomed.”
- “Walk me through your last visit to the school. What was that like?”
- “What happened the last time your child returned after an absence?”
- “Tell me about your last experience with the front office.”
- “When was the last time you heard from the school, and what was that contact like?”
- “Is there a person or place at school that feels friendly to you or your child?”
Forms for correcting barriers
Fill each one in the browser and download it as PDF or Word. Entries stay on the device.
Start here
10-Minute First Faces Walkthrough
Quick campus systems check of arrival and return: Welcome, Connect, Discover, Respond — then one strength, one gap, one action.
Start here
First Faces Empathy Interview Record
Plan the interview, record the student and family questions and answers, analyze themes, name the change to test, and run the 10-day review.
Supporting form
Student First Faces Pulse Survey
Five quick questions plus one open response about arriving and returning after an absence.
Supporting form
Family First Faces Pulse Survey
Six short statements on welcome, noticing, and problem-solving together.
Start here
First Faces Referral & Connection Pathway
Notice → Listen → Connect → Support → Follow Up. Document the handoff when a barrier is disclosed, and close the loop on whether the connection happened.
Supporting form
First Faces Staff Reflection & Readiness Tool
Ten readiness statements, pre-training reflection, four scenarios, and a Start / Strengthen / Leave Behind commitment. Use before PD and again after implementation.
Start here
First Faces Professional Learning Kit
58-minute facilitator guide: seven session segments, the “He's late again” activity, practice-lab scenarios, follow-up evidence timeline, and facilitator debrief.
Supporting form
First Faces Implementation / Fidelity Check
30–60 day leadership review: are we doing what we said we would do? Twelve implementation look-fors with ratings and evidence, an evidence snapshot, and a Protect / Strengthen / Adjust leadership action.
Supporting form
Student & Family Check-In Protocol
The shorter in-the-moment structure for checking in during outreach — welcome, curious questions, clear next steps.
Supporting form
Attendance Conversation Guide
Guide the conversation once you are ready to connect the attendance message to what you heard.
Supporting form
School Success Meeting Form (official SART form)
Formalize the plan when First Faces has surfaced the barrier and support needs to be structured with the family.
Supporting form
SART Problem-Solving Guide
Redesign SART around problem solving: what we know, what the barrier is, what we tried, and a measurable goal.
Supporting form
Supportive Outreach Meeting Agenda & Notes
The 50-minute running agenda for the outreach team to share patterns and plan follow-ups across students.
Where this fits in the process
First Faces runs at the site level, before escalation — and feeds the SART conversation if support must be formalized.
If the 10-day review shows the barrier persists, formalize support through the SART process with the School Success Meeting form — carrying forward what the student and family told you, so the plan starts from their words.