ALLEGHANY COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) – Alleghany Highlands Public Schools are working to improve student absentees as a continued nationwide effort.
Virginia has improved student absences since the COVID-19 pandemic and AHPS has worked to improve the numbers as a part of providing opportunities for students to recover with opportunities with extra sessions and programs.
“A significant amount of absences from school is detrimental to student achievement. I am happy to report that our absenteeism rate is trending in the right direction. We continue to partner with our parents to understand the barriers that are keeping their child from attending school and come up with solutions to get their child back in school regularly. Each school in our division has come up with creative incentives to get students excited to come to school daily. We also have attendance competitions among schools,” said Cindy Fox, AHPS’ supervisor of customized learning programs and division attendance.
Students who do not participate in the average school day regularly can suffer academically.
“Good attendance habits are just that — habits. Students need to come to school whenever they are well enough to do so,” said Kim Halterman and Melinda Snead-Johnson, leaders of AHPS. “We understand that life is busy and complex, sometimes resulting in student absences. We also understand that our students will be better prepared for the responsibilities of adulthood if they practice fulfilling their day-to-day responsibilities with schoolwork. It’s a balancing act.”
“Following extended breaks, it is normal for students to need a little extra encouragement to head to school,” Halterman and Snead-Johnson said. “After both the recent holidays and the recent weather, this may be especially important this year.”
Joowon Chung and Elijah Halterman, two AHPS students, are serving on the Virginia Department of Health to learn the consequences of chronic absenteeism.
“Serving on the VDH Youth Advisory Council has taught me a lot about how school absences often affect students’ grades and emotional well-being. Students who miss school can fall behind academically, feel more stressed, and struggle socially. By discussing the reasons behind chronic absenteeism, like mental health challenges or lack of support, we can help schools find better ways to support students. These discussions with our council members can create changes that improve attendance and student success across schools statewide, which benefits everyone,” Chung said.
“It is incredibly difficult to entice secondary students into coming into school but it is something that needs to be done. Having students in seats for the school day is one of, if not the most important, aspects of their learning and education. It is an uphill battle but I think it can be done,” Elijah Halterman said.
The AHPS Board is working to build and recognize perfect school attendance along with building relationships with the community.
On Tuesday, January 21, the school board will recognize those students with perfect attendance in the first semester. Those students will be recognized before the board meeting.