Official Letter
Official Letter
Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:
September is National School Attendance Awareness Month: Engaging Families to Reduce Chronic Absence
As we begin the 2024–25 school year, I want to thank you and your staff for all you have done to support our students and their families. This year provides the opportunity to create and extend positive and supportive conditions for learning that foster healing and growth and elevate the strengths of every student.
We celebrate National School Attendance Awareness Month to increase consistent student attendance throughout our state during September and the rest of the year. I urge you to use this month as a catalyst to launch and expand proactive student and family engagement campaigns geared toward increasing consistent attendance and ultimately raising academic outcomes.
While it appears that the rate of chronic absenteeism is declining statewide, we know that every child’s consistent attendance in school is foundational to their academic growth and success. Attendance Awareness Month is an opportunity to start the school year with information and resources that support local educational agencies and schools to successfully engage students.
For September 2024, California’s theme for Attendance Awareness Month is “California Shows Up Every Day!” We want our students and families to know that our school staff and educators are here to welcome and support them every day, and we want to use this month as an opportunity to increase statewide awareness of the incredible supports for students and families in California schools, including universal school meals and Community Schools resources.
The White House has provided recommendations of research-based strategies for increasing attendance as part of the Biden-Harris Improving Student Achievement Agenda. Please see this fact sheet linked below, which includes specific recommendations for increasing attendance, such as low-cost informational text messages to families that have been shown to reduce absenteeism by 17 percent, as well as home visits and early warning systems for chronic absence.
Fact Sheet on Improving Student Achievement Agenda 2024: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/01/17/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-announces-improving-student-achievement-agenda-in-2024.
The following links to Attendance Works web pages may be helpful for promoting attendance awareness in your school community and reengaging students and families who have disconnected from our systems:
- Promotional Materials at https://awareness.attendanceworks.org/resources/promotional-materials
- Social Media Tools at https://awareness.attendanceworks.org/social-media-3
- Count Us In! Toolkit 2024 at https://awareness.attendanceworks.org/resources/count-us-toolkit
These links to additional free resources are available through the Attendance Works website and the SchoolStatus website:
- Showing Up Matters for R.E.A.L. Toolkit (Attendance Works): https://www.attendanceworks.org/resources/toolkits/showing-up-matters-for-real
- Resources (SchoolStatus): https://www.schoolstatus.com/resource-library
- Handouts for Families (Attendance Works): https://www.attendanceworks.org/resources/handouts-for-families-2
- Proclamations 2024 (Attendance Works): https://awareness.attendanceworks.org/resources/proclamations-2024
These resources can help us build classrooms and school sites where every student knows that they are an important member of the learning community. The resources also provide critical tools for schools to engage families with positive and supportive messages that encourage consistent attendance. When students and families know their attendance matters, we see significant increases in attendance rates and corresponding gains in academic indicators.
If you have any questions about this important campaign, please contact Jacie Ragland, Education Administrator for the Educational Options Office within the Whole Child Division, at jragland@cde.ca.gov.
Thank you for your efforts to make National School Attendance Awareness Month meaningful and successful.Sincerely,
Tony Thurmond
State Superintendent of Public Instruction