Chronic absence has become a national crisis. Data show chronic absence nearly doubled by the end of the 2021-22 school year. While we are seeing a steady decline, it remains extraordinarily high, and now affects nearly one out of four students. Chronic absence is typically defined as missing 10% of the school year – or just two days each month – for any reason.
To tackle this challenge, all hands are needed. The Count Us In! toolkit offers messaging and positive engagement strategies, key concepts and tools to help educators raise awareness about why showing up to school matters and also to build the universal tier one strategies that motivate students to come to school and, then layering on support when that’s needed.
Watch how Richmond Public Schools is tackling student absenteeism (go to minute 2:50 to see Hedy Chang talk about chronic absence).
Browse the links below and click on what interests you. Some of these links will take you to the Attendance Works website. To return, click on Attendance Awareness Campaign at the top of the AW website.
For this year’s 14th annual Attendance Awareness Campaign, our theme is Your Presence Matters! It lifts up our focus on building trusting relationships with students, families and communities. It highlights the importance of listening to students and families to learn and leverage their strengths, as well as understand their challenges getting to school. Your Presence Matters! is a call to action for everyone to work together and remove barriers and support students in attending school, especially when challenges make it harder to show up.
This year’s campaign will highlight how creating partnerships between communities, schools, students and families supports building and implementing long-term plans to address today’s unusually high levels of chronic absenteeism. And we will share strategies that research and practice show can improve attendance and engagement.
Local action is essential. Spark SF Public Schools, in partnership with San Francisco Unified School District, launched Be Here! a 6-week social media PSA campaign with weekly attendance and belonging themes. In Louisiana, Superintendent of NOLA Public Schools, Fateama Fulmore released a short video sharing what’s in store for students and families in the new school year.
States also can play a leadership role. Excellent examples of state campaigns include Connecticut’s School Is Better with You!; Massachusetts’s School Is Where We Belong; and Rhode Island’s Attendance Matters RI.
Since 2013, the Attendance Awareness Campaign has engaged thousands of schools and communities. Over 100 national and state organizations are now working together to ensure everyone can participate, from a single school to a citywide coalition to a national or state organization. Sign up here to receive regular updates and tips for improving attendance.
A special thank you to our Attendance Awareness Campaign corporate sponsors for their commitment to help ensure that every child is in school every day. Their generous investment makes it possible for us to provide you with free strategies and materials. Thank you, School Technology, TalkingPoints and Kaiser Permanente!