Many schools now use early warning systems to identify students who are at risk of not graduating, with the goal of intervening early to help students get back on track for on-time graduation. This study, designed in collaboration with the REL Midwest Dropout Prevention Research Alliance, examined the impact and implementation of one early warning system—the Early Warning Intervention and Monitoring System (EWIMS)—on student and school outcomes.

EWIMS is a systematic approach to using data to identify students who are at risk of not graduating on time, assign students flagged as at risk to interventions, and monitor at-risk students’ response to intervention. The EWIMS model provides schools with guidance to implement a seven-step process, supported by the use of an early warning data tool.

This report provides rigorous initial evidence that even with limited implementation during the first year of adoption, using a comprehensive early warning system can reduce the percentage of students who are chronically absent or who fail one or more courses.