Why EVERY DAY MATTERS . . .

Did you know that

by 9th grade, students’ chances of graduating from high school drop by 20 percentage points for every week of school they have missed? Or that nearly 8 million students—16 percent of the nation’s public-school population—are chronically absent. Or five to seven and a half million K-12 students are missing at least one month of school in their school years.

Extensive research shows that every day engaged in the school and classroom leads to life success, just as every absence – excused or unexcused – and tardy creates a downward pattern. There is an alarming trend in chronic absenteeism nationwide, and at EVERY DAY MATTERS, we have a passion for promoting and supporting the reversal of this trend.

Our Mission is to address Absenteeism before it affects Student Achievement. Chronic absenteeism is a holistic challenge, requiring holistic solutions. Since a student who was chronically absent in the past is highly likely to be chronically absent again, it follows that efforts towards reducing absenteeism in early grades will reduce absenteeism in higher grades.

Our EVERY DAY MATTERS SUMMIT

strives to bring together like minds and leaders that share our Passion and Purpose for improving students’ futures by Building a Culture of Excellent Attendance. It is our EVERY DAY MATTERS goal and purpose to create an online forum where school leaders can:

• Collaborate on Practical Strategies for Improving Attendance that have strong track records and how they can be introduced and scaled at our schools
• Share Effective Messaging and Engagement Strategies employed by school districts, including how to learn if our strategies are working.
• Learn how districts are applying the Resources to turn around Chronic Absenteeism & Truancy Numbers at their respective schools
• Identify how Barriers to attendance can be understood and what resources are available to address those barriers and causes. Define follow-up plans to check if the assistance provided has helped the student’s attendance?
• Share Best Practices for Incentivizing Good Attendance. What incentives are best targeted at each age group? When can attendance incentives backfire?
• Discuss how Student Absenteeism affects the teacher’s course plan. Can Teachers engaging with Student and Parents on attendance reduce absenteeism?
• Identify Success Strategies and associated Challenges of Home Visits.
• Implement Positive Messaging Techniques and Technologies. Utilizing Texts and Apps to communicate with parents can be very effective for individualized positive messaging about the importance of attending school and developmentally appropriate learning tips/topics etc.