Michigan schools roll out contests to boost student attendance
Michigan school districts are using competitions and public challenges to boost student attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism, framing missed school days as an issue that can be addressed with incentives, family outreach and in-school support.
In Muskegon County, two neighboring districts are competing for a trophy under the “Show Up Challenge,” with the prize awarded to the district whose students have five or fewer absences in seven months, along with trophy and celebration plans for the students. Oakridge Superintendent Tom Livezey said the idea came together quickly as a “fun, positive-spirited thing” to create a win-win approach while highlighting efforts to improve attendance. Holton Superintendent Adam Bayne said the point is not only to avoid absences but to ensure students are present because schools “miss them when they’re gone.”
The program runs from October through April, with officials describing it as part of a broader push to lower chronic absenteeism. The report said Oakridge’s chronic absenteeism rate is 28.1% and Holton’s is 33.5%, and state officials are also confronting a larger pattern in which nearly 28% of students miss 10% or more of the school year.
Beyond the contest between two districts, a separate effort is aimed at explaining to families when absences should be considered avoidable and when a child is too sick to attend. The “Strive for Fewer Than 5” effort is being run by a group of five intermediate school districts covering eight counties: Bay-Arenac ISD, Gratiot-Isabella RESD, Clare-Gladwin RESD, Midland County ESA and Saginaw ISD.
Maggie Wisniewski, the family engagement and literacy hub coordinator for the region, said the campaign uses paid advertising and has been viewed 508,000 times. At Gratiot-Isabella RESD, Attendance Systems and Support Coach Scott Hemker said about 80 people attended four days of training focused on building relationships with families and tackling barriers to attendance, and he said the awareness campaign is intended to lead families to understand that absences can affect learning.
Mount Pleasant Public Schools Superintendent Jennifer Verleger said that while the campaign itself has existed for years, the current change centers on explaining to parents how to determine when a child is too sick to come to school. Verleger added that districts need to intervene early, saying that “a series of absences will just lead to more absences unless we do something to intervene to make a positive difference.”
In describing what drives attendance, University of Michigan–Flint assistant professor Jeremy Singer said there are generally three ways to affect it: change student and parent behavior, improve student experiences in school, or reduce barriers that keep students from attending. Singer said that an incentive can lead to a modest increase in attendance but schools cannot do it alone, and he co-authored a study that found “26% of schools increased their focus on incentives since the pandemic” during last school year.
Singer also urged state leaders to look beyond incentives toward other factors he said influence attendance, including transportation, employment and child care. He cited Holton and Oakridge as examples of districts combining health access and engagement efforts, with health clinics that allow students to get medical care without leaving school.
Holton runs school-wide monthly attendance competitions, and the report said winning grades receive recognition such as a special hot breakfast or bragging tags for backpacks. Oakridge’s approach includes services such as washers and dryers for students who need laundry, mentorship programs and student appreciation days, reflecting a broader effort to remove practical barriers while promoting attendance as a shared goal.