September is Attendance Awareness Month and Tuesday, September 20 is High Attendance Day for all school districts in the state, including Clinton County.

The following are 10 facts about school attendance:

1. Absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year. Half the students who miss two to four days in September go on to miss nearly a month of school.

2. An estimated five million to 7.5 million U.S. students miss nearly a month of school each year.

3. Absenteeism and its ill effects start early. One in 10 kindergarten and first grade students are chronically absent. Poor attendance can influence whether children read proficiently by the end of third grade or be held back.

4. By sixth grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school.

5. Research shows that missing 10 percent of the school, or about 17 days in most school districts, negatively affects a student’s academic performance. That’s just two days month and that’s known as chronic absence.

6. The academic impact of missing that much school is the same whether the absences are excused or unexcused. Suspensions also add to lost time in the classroom.

7. Low-income students are four times more likely to be chronically absent than others often for reasons beyond their control, such as unstable housing, unreliable transportation, and a lack of access to health care.

8. When students improve their attendance rates, they improve their academic prospects and chances for graduating.

9. Attendance improves when schools engage students and parents in positive ways and when schools provide supports for chronically absent students.

10. In order to improve school attendance and academic achievement, schools must track how many students are missing so many days in excused and unexcused absence that they are headed off track academically.

Julie York, Clinton County Director of Pupil Personnel (DPP) states, “These facts from attendanceworks.com may seem surprising but they hold true to the data in our own community and school district. Poor attendance does affect your child academically, socially, and emotionally. Children need structure and routine in order to feel safe and secure. School provides that structure until a student graduates and seeks further education or employment.”

If you have questions or concerns about your child’s attendance, contact your child’s school or DPP York at 606-387-6480. Early intervention is the key to good attendance, academic achievement, and future success.