Union Launches 'Be Present To Win' Campaign To Address Absenteeism

Many districts across the country are dealing with chronic absenteeism among students. Union Public Schools have just launched a new campaign to address the problem.

It's called the "Be Present to Win" campaign, and it's trying to address chronic absenteeism by poking fun at the various excuses students use to get out of school. These could include everything from staying up to binge Netflix all night to searching for Big Foot.

Chronic absenteeism occurs when a student misses 10% of their school days for the year, which comes out to roughly two days per month. It's an issue affecting about 30% of the entire Union School District.

Chris Payne, with Union Public Schools, said that's why the district launched its ‘Be Present to Win’ campaign, to not only poke fun at some of those crazy excuses but also to highlight the importance of being in class as much as possible.

"We have entitled this campaign 'Be Present to Win' because we really do believe you really, truly do have to be present if you're going to win at life, if you're going to graduate, if you're going to go onto additional schooling. Your success depends on being here," Payne said.

Payne also said part of the issue stems from the pandemic because there was the idea that it was OK for students not to be in class during the height of the pandemic in order to keep people safe, but he said the issue of people missing school has gotten worse, and missing class can hurt a student's ability to learn.

"One of the critical things is, if you're not here to learn, then you're missing a lot. A lot of times, people think, 'Oh well, I can just make up that work. I can get the assignment from the teacher.' You're not only missing the work, but you're missing the conversation," Payne said.

Union hopes to cut chronic absenteeism by about 7% this year, but the district said it's going to take a collaborative effort from the district and parents.