Douglas Middle School

“The Douglas Public Schools offer diverse learning experiences that meet the academic, social, physical, and emotional needs of all students. We provide a safe, supportive, and challenging learning environment in which students may achieve academic success and personal growth. Decisions are made in the best interest of students.”

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has set very clear expectations on ensuring students are attending school.

M.G.L. c. 71, Section 1B provides, in relevant part, as follows: “Each school committee shall have a policy of notifying the parent or guardian of a student who has at least 5 days in which the student has missed 2 or more periods unexcused in a school year or who has missed 5 or more school days unexcused in a school year. The notification policy shall require that the school principal or headmaster, or a designee, make a reasonable effort to meet with the parent or guardian of a student who has 5 or more unexcused absences to develop action steps for

student attendance. The action steps shall be developed jointly and agreed upon by the school principal or headmaster, or a designee, the student and the student’s parent or guardian and with input from other relevant school personnel and officials from relevant public safety, health and human service, housing and nonprofit agencies.”

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) defines chronic absenteeism as a student missing 10% or more of the days they are enrolled in school.

Key details of this definition for 2026 include:

Threshold: For a standard 180-day school year, this equates to 18 or more days absent.
Inclusion Criteria: All absences are counted toward this total, regardless of whether they are excused, unexcused, or for disciplinary reasons (e.g., suspensions).
Proportional Calculation: If a student is enrolled for only part of a year, the 10% threshold still applies (e.g., a student enrolled for 90 days is chronically absent if they miss 9 or more days).
Eligible Enrollment: Students are generally included in this calculation if they have been enrolled for at least 31 instructional days.

Related Legal Definitions

Habitually Truant: Massachusetts law (G.L. c. 119, § 21) defines this as a school-aged child who willfully fails to attend school for more than 8 school days in a quarter without a valid excuse.
Child Requiring Assistance (CRA): This status may be applied to children between ages 6 and 18 who are habitually truant or repeatedly fail to obey school regulations, which can lead to intervention through the Juvenile Court.

Accountability and Trends

Chronic absenteeism is a key performance indicator in the Massachusetts school accountability system. As of 2026, data from recent cycles (2024–2025) shows a statewide chronic absenteeism rate of approximately 18.8%, down from a post-pandemic peak of 27.7% in 2021–2022 but still higher than the pre-pandemic baseline of 12.9%.

We understand that everyone gets sick. And we understand that some of our students have severe medical needs. But missing just two days of school a month would categorize a student as Chronically Absent. What does that mean for your student?

In

Massachusetts

, chronic absenteeism leads to severe, long-term academic consequences across all grade levels. In 2026, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) continues to emphasize that missing 10% of the school year (18 days) is a primary predictor of academic struggle.

Key academic consequences include:

Lower MCAS Performance: Students who are chronically absent score significantly lower on state assessments.
- In 2025, chronically absent students were 20 percentage points less likely to meet or exceed expectations on the MCAS compared to those with steady attendance.
- Only 24% of chronically absent students in grades 3-8 met English Language Arts (ELA) expectations, and only 19% did so in Math.
Reading Deficits in Early Grades: Missing school in kindergarten and first grade is a leading indicator that a student will not read at grade level by the third grade. This "snowball effect" makes it difficult for students to transition from "learning to read" to "reading to learn".
Reduced High School Graduation Rates: Chronic absenteeism is a major warning sign for dropping out.
- Nearly 90% of students who dropped out of Massachusetts schools in recent years were chronically absent during their final year.
- By 9th grade, attendance is a better predictor of on-time graduation than actual test scores.
Knowledge Gaps and Sequencing Issues: Because curriculum—especially in Math—is often sequential, missing even a few days can create permanent gaps in a student's foundation, making future lessons harder to grasp.
Spillover Effects: High levels of chronic absenteeism in a classroom can lower achievement for all students, as teachers must spend more instructional time on remediation for returning students rather than moving forward with new material.

We will update you with mailings if your student has missed ten school days this year. Please know that we are here to help and that we are all on the same team. If you need anything or have any questions, please reach out to us. #TeamDouglas

On Friday, January 9th, the six grade students participated in their bi-annual Tiger Bucks Auction as part of Douglas Middle School's PBIS program.

PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) is an evidence-based framework schools use to create positive, predictable, and safe learning environments by proactively teaching and reinforcing positive behaviors, focusing on prevention over punishment, and supporting students' academic, social, and emotional needs through a tiered system of supports. Instead of just reacting to misbehavior, PBIS involves clearly defining expectations, teaching them like any other subject, and using data to provide universal support (Tier 1), targeted help for groups (Tier 2), and intensive, individualized plans (Tier 3) for all students, leading to better school climate and student success.

Tiger Bucks are a fun token economy where students earn special currency as immediate recognition for demonstrating positive behavior and meeting school expectations. Students used their accumalated Tiger Bucks to bid on the auction items.

Special thank yous to the 6th grade team and to all of the parents and community members that made this a special day.

DMS Boys Basketball Schedule

DMS Girls Basketball Schedule

Please continue to remind your student to charge and bring their Chromebook to school each and every day. This would be a great help to us. Thank you for your assistance.

The administration and staff of Douglas Middle School are working to teach our students about mental health and how to seek help if they are worried about themselves or a friend. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth in the U.S., and prevention programs delivered in school settings have been effective at identifying and supporting these students.*

Beginning on January 20, 2026, the eighth-grade students will participate in the "Signs of Suicide" (SOS) Program. This program has been implemented by thousands of schools over the past twenty years. Studies have shown that this program effectively teaches students about depression and suicide while reducing the number of students’ self-reported suicide attempts.

Through the program, students will learn:

That depression is treatable, further encouraging them to seek help
How to identify depression and potential suicide risk in themselves or a friend
To ACT (Acknowledge, Care and Tell a trusted adult) if concerned about themselves or a friend
Who they can turn to at school for help, if they need it

Students will watch age-appropriate video clips, participate in a guided discussion led by the DMS school psychologist and school counselors, and complete a brief depression screening tool. The tool cannot provide a diagnosis of depression, but it does indicate whether a young person should be referred for an evaluation by a mental health professional.

At the end of the class, students will complete an exit slip which asks whether they would like to talk to an adult about themselves or a friend. Ms. Hurley (DMS & DHS School Psychologist) Ms. Avedian (DMS Adjustment Counselor), and Mrs. Markopoulos (DMS School Counselor) will meet with identified students following the training.

All eighth-grade students are scheduled to attend this training. A parent/guardian letter describing the program and a list of resources will be sent home with students on January 9, 2026. These documents have been uploaded to the parent resource section of the Douglas Middle School webpage.

If a parent/guardian does not want their child to participate, they can opt out of this training by notifying Mrs. Hurley at jhurley@douglasps.net. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Hurley at 508-476-3332 ext. 2263, Ms. Avedian at ext. 2265, or Mrs. Markopoulos at ext. 2267.

*Clark, K. N. et al. (2022) ‘Evaluating the Signs of Suicide Program: Middle School Students at Risk and Staff Acceptability’, School Psychology Review, 51(3), pp. 354–369. doi: 10.1080/2372966X.2021.1936166.