It seems obvious that students who miss the most school time have the worst educational outcomes, but the Nation’s Report Card, issued by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in January of this year, confirms the obvious.
NAEP tracks the relationship between academic performance and opportunities to learn and has determined that school attendance is an important contextual factor in reading and math scores. Absenteeism, which rose over the pandemic period, has declined since their 2022 assessment, but not to pre-pandemic levels.
According to NAEP, in the 2022 school year, on average 22% of fourth-grade public school students reported being absent five days or more in the month preceding the date they took the NAEP assessment—double the percentage in 2019.
Authors Emma Banay, Hedy N. Chang, and Jodi Grant, writing in FutureEd, posit an antidote for this nationwide post-COVID problem – high-quality afterschool programming, like the Thrive On (K-6) and Thrive Up (middle and high school) afterschool programs of the Flint Center for Educational Excellence.
Their opinion piece argues: Reversing absenteeism isn’t just about getting kids in the door; it’s about keeping them engaged once they are there so they’re more likely to return. And that’s where out-of-school-time programs excel. Research shows that participation in high-quality afterschool programs can reduce school-day absences. A national report on 21st Century Community Learning Centers, a program that primarily serves nearly 1.4 million students attending high-poverty, low performing schools, found that approximately three in five previously chronically absent students improved their school-day attendance after participating.
These programs work because they address a core reason students disengage from school: it doesn’t feel relevant to their lives, and they feel disconnected from the adults at school.
The Flint Center’s Thrive On and Thrive Up are that kind of program. Not only do Thrive On and Thrive Up give kids an opportunity to explore topics they care about and provide them with enrichment activities in sports, music, and STEM, they also foster a sense of belonging and connect kids with caring adults focused on their success both inside and outside of the classroom.
This afterschool initiative is bolstered by the Flint Center’s Community Education initiative that embeds Success Coaches into the school day, connecting adults with kids to directly address absenteeism, help with personal issues, or mentor those needing academic support.
So, what does this mean for Flint kids? These two initiatives positively impact the attendance and academic performance of Flint kids.
In the 2023-24 school year, students who participated in the Thrive On and Thrive Up after school programs had higher attendance rates and performed better on district assessment tests than their peers who did not participate in the program. The impact of Success Coaches in the schools also positively affected the NWEA district growth assessment. Students with a Success Coach caught up to their peers who did not have a Success Coach in Math and Reading over the school year.
The approximately 300 students eligible for success mentoring were those with moderate chronic absenteeism (attendance rates between 81%-90%). In all four marking periods, students with Success Coaches showed better attendance rates than their peers without a Success Coach.
Not only did it improve their attendance and growth scores, but they also enjoyed it. More than 80% of the students participating in the afterschool programming agreed or strongly agreed that the program was fun and they would participate again.
They also appreciated the support they received from afterschool staff. Feedback indicated that students understand the benefits of the program and know they can count on the staff to support them.
The upshot is that quality programming + caring adults = more academically and personally successful kids. Flint kids deserve the opportunity to become their best selves. The Flint Center’s afterschool and community education initiatives are working to give them that opportunity.
