The Clark County School District (CCSD) is assembling an array of District and community resources to spur its Every Day Matters initiative to improve student attendance.
? Why it matters: Chronic absenteeism, which was 36 percent in CCSD last school year, negatively affects student success, including grades and test scores.
The Every Day Matters initiative will use a strategic approach, enlisting a coalition of CCSD and community partners to ensure that students are engaged and attending school regularly.
- District employees, including school-based staff, will reach out to families, encouraging the importance of attending school, and there will be a public awareness campaign to amplify this message.
? Defining chronic absenteeism: It is the percentage of students who are absent 10 percent or more of enrolled days for any reason (suspension, illness, caring for a family member, e.g.), whether excused or unexcused.
- Go deeper: Chronic absenteeism doubled nationwide since the pandemic began, according to a report by researchers at the nonprofit Attendance Works, University of Tennessee, and the University of California, Davis.
- For context: “A hidden educational crisis.” That is how the U.S. Department of Education described the situation in 2017, when one in every six students was deemed chronically absent.
