Student Attendance

Good morning, Parents.

Here are some statistics related to our student’s attendance that Bryce DeRoos provided regarding the correlation (remember, correlation does not equal causation!) between attendance and Grade Point Average (GPA)/ACT scores.

Seniors:

Of the students with 10 or more days absent , 48% were ranked in the lowest 25 (GPA) in their class and 71% scored below state average on ACT.

Of the students with 10 or more days absent, only 20% were ranked in the highest 25 (GPA) in their class and only 28% scored above state average on ACT.

Juniors:

Of the students with 10 or more days absent, 44% were ranked in the lowest 25 (GPA) in their class and 91% scored below state average on ACT.

Of the students with 10 or more days absent, only 8% were ranked in the highest 25 (GPA) in their class and only 9% scored above state average on ACT.

Sophomores:

Of the students with 10 or more days absent, 25% were ranked in the lowest 25 (GPA) in their class

Of the students with 10 or more days absent, 4% were ranked in the highest 25 (GPA) in their class

Freshmen:

Of the students with 9 or more days absent, 32% were ranked in the lowest 25 (GPA) in their class

Of the students with 9 or more days absent, 8% were ranked in the highest 25 (GPA) in their class

CONCLUSIONS…

Across the board, those who have the highest GPAs are present in school significantly more than those with the lowest GPAs. In addition, students who are absent 10 or more days are much more likely to score below the state average on the ACT (this was evident in both the senior and junior classes, 71% and 91% respectively).

We talk a lot about continuing to get better at preparing our students to be college and career ready. That means doing our very best to have students prepared to be successful in any career they choose. Regardless of the job or career each student selects, there may be no single factor more central to success in that job than regular, consistent attendance. A skilled, hardworking employee who is absent from work 10+ days a year has their value to the company dramatically reduced by that poor attendance. This is an area where as a school, we feel we need to partner more effectively with parents to improve attendance and make it more consistent. We don’t know how to do this real well yet, but we are searching for solutions. We have far too many students whose attendance falls well below what employers will consider acceptable, and we really want to improve this situation not only so students are more successful in school, but also so that they all develop better attendance habits for the future. Any support or advice parents can provide on this challenge would be appreciated.

Have a great week and an enjoyable Memorial Day weekend.

Scott

May–