CAMBA provides attendance outreach services to students who were absent from school between 27 and 75 days during the previous year or for 15 or more days during the previous school semester. The Community Achievement in the Public Schools (CAPS) program targets students who are most in need by monitoring their attendance on a daily basis through reports provided by school personnel. We provide each student with individual and group counseling services at least twice a month, with the expectation of establishing goals that will improve several key areas in their lives. The program coordinators also assess each student in order to develop agreed upon short and long term goals that will improve students’ attendance. CAPS is also responsible for family involvement and higher education/career exploration for 35 of the students and families at I.S. 68 in Canarsie, Brooklyn. The overall goal of the program is to get middle school students to graduate on time and transition successfully to high school.
CAPS began as AIDP in 1988, and currently serves over 52 students each year.