HomeMy WebLinkAboutAttendance Awareness Month - September 2019Proclamation
“Attendance Awareness Month”
September 2019
WHEREAS, good attendance in school is essential to student achievement, learning and progress toward
graduation; and
WHEREAS, chronic absence – missing 10 percent, two or three days a month, or more – is a proven
predictor of academic trouble and dropout rates, and weakens our communities and our local economy; and
WHEREAS, the impact of chronic absence hits low-income students and children of color particularly hard
and exacerbates the achievement gap that separates these students from their peers if they lack the resources to
make up lost time, or face systemic barriers to getting to school; such as unreliable transportation, lack of access
to health care, unstable or unaffordable housing; and
WHEREAS, absenteeism also undermines efforts to improve struggling schools, since it is hard to measure
improvements in classroom instruction if students are not in class to benefit from them; and
WHEREAS, schools and community partners can reach out more frequently to absent students to determine
why they are missing school and what would help them attend more regularly; and
WHEREAS, all students, even those who show up regularly, are affected by chronic absence because
teachers must spend time reviewing for students who missed lessons; and
WHEREAS, chronic absence can be significantly reduced when schools, parents and communities work
together to monitor and promote good attendance and address hurdles that keep children from getting to school;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Matt Watkins, Mayor of the City of Pasco, Washington, do hereby proclaim our
city will stand with the nation in recognizing September as “Attendance Awareness Month.” We hereby commit
to focusing on reducing absenteeism to give all children an equal opportunity to learn, grow and thrive
academically, emotional and socially.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Official Seal of the City of Pasco,
State of Washington, to be affixed this 16th day of September 2019.
Matt Watkins, Mayor
City of Pasco