Celebrating Attendance Innovation: 5 Districts Leading the Way

At EveryDay Labs, we believe in shining a spotlight on the innovative, impactful work happening in school districts across the country. That’s why we launched the first-ever Attendance Innovation Awards—to recognize and celebrate creative, community-driven solutions that are helping students show up and thrive.

From over 40 inspiring applications, five standout districts were selected. During a recent webinar, leaders from each winning district shared their approaches to improving attendance and building stronger school communities. Here's a look at the powerful strategies they’ve put into action:

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🎉 Grand Prize Winner: Menchville High School, Newport News Public Schools (VA)

Innovation: ESL Soccer League to Boost Belonging and Attendance

Recognizing high chronic absenteeism among English Learners, Menchville High created a student-led ESL soccer league. To play, students had to meet attendance requirements—criteria that reset each marking period. The initiative not only improved attendance (with one game day yielding the highest attendance of the year) but also fostered connection, leadership, and pride.

“The key was student voice. We asked what they wanted—and they said soccer. Then we made it meaningful, inclusive, and fun.” – Jeremy Wall

Read more here

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🏆 Runner-Up: Carver College and Career Academy, Chesterfield County Public Schools (VA)

Innovation: Reimagining School for Students Who’ve Struggled Most

Carver knew they needed a Tier 1 overhaul. They redesigned the school day, created interest-based clubs during school hours, and centered student voice through surveys and empathy interviews. The result? A renewed school culture that led to a 10% drop in chronic absenteeism.

“We’re rebuilding trust with students who’ve struggled in the past. That starts with relationships and relevance.” – Dr. Dana Dale

Read more here

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🏆 Runner-Up: Clark County School District (NV)

Innovation: A District-Wide Office of Chronic Absenteeism + 43,000 Home Visits

With nearly 300,000 students, Clark County created a central office to unify attendance efforts and launched the Every Day Matters campaign. They trained staff on compassionate outreach, analyzed real-time data, and revamped the role of attendance officers—who completed over 43,000 home visits last year. Businesses joined in, posting decals and even calling the district to help return students to school.

“We gained trust by doing what we said we would. That changed the dynamic with families—and the results followed.” – Danielle Jones

Read more here

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🏆 Runner-Up: Glendora Unified School District (CA)

Innovation: Building Consistency and Compassion from the Inside Out

After seeing chronic absenteeism jump to 18.8% post-COVID, Glendora focused on internal alignment and systems. They formed PLCs for attendance clerks and administrators, streamlined codes and policies, and shifted the culture from punitive to supportive. A new Family Resource Center provides everything from clothes to car seats, helping families feel seen and supported.

“Our clerks became change agents. When you empower your team and treat families as partners, change becomes possible.” – Josie Wilson

Read more here

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🏆 Runner-Up: Perris Union High School District (CA)

Innovation: Community-Led Attendance Action

Perris Unified mobilized community school steering committees at every site—including parents, staff, and students. Parent ambassadors handed out attendance flyers at football games, visited local businesses, and connected families with resources. Their efforts were supported by dedicated community liaisons and a county-wide referral network.

“Our families became attendance champions. When you give them a voice and role, they become your most powerful partners.” – Lindsay Chavez

Read more here

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Common Threads of Innovation

Across these five districts, several key themes emerged:

✅ Student Voice: Empathy interviews, surveys, and advisory panels ensured students helped shape solutions.
✅ Family Partnerships: From community ambassadors to attendance nights with food and childcare, schools met families where they were.
✅ Data-Driven, People-First: Each initiative was rooted in data, but relationships came first. As one panelist put it: “It’s not just data—it’s people.”
✅ Flexibility and Fun: Whether it was soccer tournaments or mid-year pivots, teams weren’t afraid to try, tweak, and try again.

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Advice for Districts Getting Started

If you're just beginning your attendance improvement journey, the winners offered this advice:

• Start with relationships—and the data will follow.
• Make it relevant and culturally responsive.
• Celebrate progress over perfection.
• Empower everyone on your team—from clerks to counselors to parents.
• Be ready to adapt—and don’t be afraid to fail forward.

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Congratulations again to our winners—and to every district doing the hard, important work of helping students show up and succeed. We’re honored to be your partners.

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P.S. Interested in bringing some of the strategies to your own district? We've created a few templates, below, that you can use to build awareness in your community.

• Business Decals: Print these as stickers or cutouts to share with local businesses and other community organizations to promote the importance of attendance. 
• Business Support Letter: Share these with businesses near your school(s) to ask for their help in improving student attendance.
• Home Visit Door Hanger: Leave this behind on doors if families aren't home when you're doing home visits. 
• Resource Center Business Card: Share these with families at the front desk, events, and more to let them know about available resources and how to connect with their school for support.