All4Love Helping DCPS Combat Chronic Absenteeism

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(HURLOCK, Md) – Helping kids stay in school can be a difficult task for a number of reasons.

Youth-focused non-profit, All4Love is creating a presence in five Dorchester County schools with one goal:

To figure out the roadblocks keeping kids from regularly being in class.

“Why can’t a kid get to school? Is it a transportation need? Is it they don’t have, the right clothes. Is it a hair thing? Is it, they can’t wake up on time. Nonacademic barriers to success. That’s what our school site coordinators are focusing on,” says All4Love Director, Lucas Thorpe.

In Maryland Chronic Absenteeism is when a student misses at least 10 percent of the school year or 18 out of a possible 180 days.

Something educators in Dorchester County and All4Love are working together to tackle in their corner of the state.

Hurlock Elementary Assistant Principal, Shayna Church tells WMDT, “It’s so important in the school these days to be able to build those relationships and to really get students excited to come to school, and we are very helpful and excited because we know that all for love will be able to assist us with our students.”

Being able to identify the roadblocks students face is going to go a long way in making sure there’s nothing standing between them and school.

Lucas tells us, “We can’t convince kids, to come to school. That’s not our job. But we can make sure that there’s no barriers in the way, that’ll keep them away from school. And that’s what we want to work to do.”

All4Love is working with Hurlock Elementary School, Sandy Hill Elementary School, Mace’s Lane Middle School, North Dorchester High School, and Cambridge-South Dorchester High School,