During and following the COVID-19 pandemic, chronic absenteeism in schools across the United States emerged as a serious challenge for schools and students.
Defined as students missing 10% or more of school, chronic absenteeism has risen nationwide. In the 2022-2023 school year, 20 states reported that more than 30% of their students missed at least three weeks of school.
While a multitude of factors contribute to why a student may not be able to make it to school, being absent too often can contribute to reduced academic outcomes, as well as making it difficult for students to engage with their learning goals, peers, and supportive adults.
Some solutions to improving school attendance include ensuring students have reliable and affordable transportation, knowing when it’s safe for kids to attend school after being sick, and sending text messages to parents when kids miss school.
Another solution has been found in peer-support efforts, which one school in Denver, Colorado, has found especially effective.
KIPP Sunshine Peak Academy, a fifth- through eighth-grade school in Denver, implemented an “Off the Wall Attendance Incentive” program in November 2024. In the last year, the school saw its chronic absenteeism rate plummet from 50% to 23.7%, approaching its target of under 20%.
“The root cause of the learning gap is called the opportunity gap. And so, what that means is students need to have the opportunity to learn,” Alana Raybon, the school’s principal, told Denver 9 News. “If they're not here, then they can't learn.”
The new program includes a multi-pronged approach to getting kids in class.
First, students were paired with an “accountability buddy” to encourage each other to attend school. Students also created custom attendance plans with staff, which include a myriad of incentives they can earn when they meet their goals.
Incentives include T-shirts, special drinks and snacks, activities like having more social time at recess, catered lunches, and even the opportunity to “pie” a teacher at the end of the semester.
Students operate in a “stick to six” model, which encourages them to miss six days or fewer per semester. They track their attendance progress and take those trackers home to their families, too.
“At KIPP Colorado, we believe showing up matters, and we’re making it fun, rewarding, and worth celebrating,” a recent video from the school shares. “Off The Wall Attendance celebrates and rewards students for their commitment. Our students took ownership of their attendance like never before.”
In the video, students are seen gathering for an assembly in which they get to throw a generously whipped cream-topped pie in the face of one of their teachers.
That teacher, later filmed wearing a poncho covered in frosting, exclaimed, “Yay for attendance!”
The prizes are fun and definitely incentivize participation, but the peer-to-peer approach is what gets them to the finish line.
“My attendance was really bad last year, so this helped me with my attendance going up,” eighth grader K’layia Grays told Denver 9 News. “It’s helping my grades; therefore, I will be able to go to high school, and I will be able to become what I want to be.”
Her accountability buddy is Julianna Torres, who also struggled with attendance before having a friend and a morning routine.
“We call in the morning and get ready on the phone together,” Grays said. “And then she walks to my house, and then we walk to school together.”
The school, which has about 300 students, now averages above 92% daily attendance. Before implementing the program, that rate was about 85%.
Angelica Ramirez, the school’s dean of operations, said the peer-to-peer method was more effective than adult intervention alone.
“It was very nice to have a peer who is in the same classrooms, the same setting, the same environment, to tell you, ‘Hey, I want you here to be in class with me,’” she told Denver 9 News.
“This program isn’t just about prizes. It’s about building strong habits, accountability, and a culture where attendance equals success,” Paige Mathieson, the school’s assistant principal of operations, added in the video.
“We are committed to ensuring that every student has the support they need to show up and thrive.”
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Header image courtesy of KIPP Colorado Schools
