There are many different reasons why a child is absent from school. The child could be sick, have a family emergency or have another obstacle that makes it difficult to get to school that day.
The Macomb Intermediate School District (MISD) understands that getting to school is not always easy and is doing its part to help families combat excessive absences.
We spoke with Sara Orris, School Health Education & Homeless Education Consultant, and Michelle Marcellin, Staff and Student Support Consultant, on how the MISD and Macomb County public schools have been working together to do so.
Reasons a child may be absent
“The top four reasons a child may be absent from school include illnesses, transportation barriers, parents with multiple drop-offs and students just choosing to not attend,” says Marcellin.
Sometimes being absent is out of the child or family’s control. In these circumstances, a child may not have a ride to school or the family may be experiencing homelessness at the moment and are unaware of the resources available to attend school.
“While we are seeing chronic absenteeism among approximately 30% of all students, our homeless students experience the highest rate of absenteeism. About 60% of students experiencing homelessness are chronically absent from school,” says Orris.
One of the things that makes Macomb County different when it comes to combating absenteeism is that the county tries to figure out how to help the family before it becomes a bigger issue.
“We’re trying to address the attendance problem before it becomes a truancy concern,” says Orris. “We know that academic outcomes are not great for kids that get involved with the truancy system.”
It is important for the school to have open communication with the parents so they can figure out what barriers are keeping students from attending school and work together to eliminate those barriers that lead to excessive absences.
Missing 2 days of school per month will result in chronic absenteeism.
“Students who are in school are far more likely to do well in school and achieve good grades,” says Marcellin.
Taking a positive approach to attendance
Every school district takes its own approach to combatting absenteeism.
“A couple of districts will start doing home visits to kids that haven’t been in school to find out what the barriers are and help to address them,” says Orris.
Marcellin explains that the schools in this district have been creative in their approach to finding positive solutions to absenteeism. Some of the ideas include:
- Host family nights
- Create incentives for students to attend school
- Spirit weeks
- Be intentional about the culture and climate of the school/classroom
- Connect students and families with an adult at school
“We have a middle school that is putting together a play on attendance and will perform it at elementary schools,” says Marcellin. “Schools who approach attendance in a positive — not punitive — approach have found that families are much more willing to share what is leading to absenteeism.”
A couple of the school districts have even started making their own videos about the importance of attendance.
Roseville High School’s attendance video is called, “Be the Change,” and has students and faculty featured throughout the video talking about why students should come to school and why their presence has a positive impact on staff.
Lake Shore Public Schools’ Attendance Matters Campaign video takes a different approach and is more focused on the students at their schools talking about why they love coming to school.
Getting ahead of the issue
“I started an Attendance Solutions Network with Macomb County schools a couple of years ago,” says Marcellin. “We meet monthly as a county and use data we’ve compiled to come up with data-based solutions. We focus on attendance solutions rather than truancy. We want kids in school so we need to find out why they aren’t coming and focus on solutions to getting them there.”
The schools essentially come up with potential ideas to try during the upcoming month. They also share what has worked for them and what has not been helpful.
“We look at solutions and try to be proactive by setting up systems in our schools,” says Marcellin. “We also share small attendance wins from that previous month – it doesn’t have to be a huge number. A positive impact on even one or two students is a win.”
Boosting Attendance Through the Stronger Connections Grant
Orris, Marcellin and their colleague, Nancy Buyle, applied for and received the Stronger Connections Grant on behalf of 16 participating districts.
They explained that before writing this grant application, the MISD communicated with district staff members to discuss potential high-leverage prevention programs/interventions with the ultimate goal of increasing student attendance.
“A systematic approach along with a proactive attendance campaign is being used to support family engagement, school connectedness, positive conditions for learning and access to health supports,” Orris says.
The MISD has partnered with Oakland and Wayne County on a tri-county Attendance Matters campaign initiative. Families can find resources to help with improving school attendance at LearnInClass.com
Additionally, participating districts have the opportunity to utilize a new electronic PowerSchool Attendance Management System. The system allows schools to efficiently analyze attendance trends, address the root causes of the absences and ultimately improve chronic absenteeism.
“The Stronger Connections grant is focused on promoting safer, more inclusive, and positive school environments for all students, educators, and school staff,” says Orris. “And, the MISD’s purpose is to provide training, consultation and technical assistance to the consortium districts. This grant also allows us to purchase and distribute tangible items such as calming kits and attendance incentive prizes for students. But the ultimate goal is to improve attendance among students across Macomb County.”
“We want students in school. We want students to come to school every day and feel safe, supported, and ready to learn,” says Orris. “If there are barriers keeping your student home from school, please reach out to the school principal and share concerns. They may be able to assist. Other resources are also available at LearnInClass.com.”
Additional information about the grant can be found on the MDE’s website.
For more information on living and learning in Macomb County, visit Make Macomb Your Home. Find more articles like this at Metro Parent’s A Family Guide to Macomb County.
