Indian Creek High School launches attendance incentive program

WINTERSVILLE -- Indian Creek High School is taking the initiative when it comes to boosting student attendance through a new incentive plan.

The kickoff coincides with National Attendance Awareness Month and will continue throughout the school year and beyond. ICHS Assistant Principal Matt Cowser said local businesses are offering discounts and other incentives in an effort to entice more students to be present in the classroom.

"We're going to use positive reinforcement to bring them to school, and we're doing that by partnering with different businesses to show that our kids are supported by the community and that they support their education and want them to succeed," Cowser said.

Participating businesses currently include Lock-N-Load Coffee Shop, Ice Cream Island, Pizza Hut and Primanti's in Weirton, but more may be added. Cowser said students with perfect or improved attendance will be eligible for gift cards, 10% discounts on purchases and other rewards. Incentives will be offered to individual students and each grade level.

"If you have perfect attendance or you improved your attendance by 5 percent from the previous month, your name would be entered into a drawing. Winners will be randomly picked to win a prize," he said. "We're also going to have grade-level challenges, so the grade with the best percentage of students showing up every day will get to pick what to do that week or at lunch."

Ideas could include donating $1 to duct tape a school official to the wall, with proceeds funding school activities; playing EA Sports games; or enjoying music at lunch.

Recipients also will be recognized on television screens throughout the building and on social media. The first perfect-attendance winners will be named at the end of September, with most-improved winners selected beginning in October.

The goal is to keep the initiative going and encourage students to build on that momentum.

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce also is observing the month by highlighting resources and the importance of the connection between regular school attendance and academic achievement. According to officials, research shows students benefit from connections with a trusted adult at school. Youth who feel a strong sense of belonging and can identify a staff member who cares about their well-being are more likely to attend regularly.

Cowser is drawing upon that aspect by establishing teams of teachers who will track attendance and contact parents and students at home if they are absent. Team members will represent each grade level and offer support in an effort to build positive relationships and, in turn, help lower instances of chronic absenteeism.

"We work together each week and go through who’s missed a certain amount of days, and then we send that out on the ParentSquare app or we call their parents. If kids miss the school, we’ll be calling. We want them to show up because showing up matters, and you can't graduate from a seat you never sat in."

Officials will utilize the Attendance Plus data tracking system on the ParentSquare app, while Cowser also hopes to establish a house program where students would team up to win points and further rewards. He said the goal is to lower absences, which can impact students in the long run.

"If you miss one or two days each month, that’s 17 or 18 days in a school year, and that's over 10 percent of school being missed. You may not think it's a big deal to miss one or two days a month, but it adds up quickly, and that's the message that we're trying to push out to the kids," he commented.

"Showing up matters, being prepared matters, and being ready for class matters. Half the battle is just showing up, and then then once you get here, we want to support you as much as we can. We’re trying to show them that someone cares about their education and about them, and if they’re alone or feeling down, they can always come talk to us. We’re like one, and I always tell them that we’re family. The whole district, the whole community here is one big family."

Meanwhile, local businesses are invited to participate in the incentive program and may contact Cowser or district Public Relations Director Amy Colantoni at (740) 264-1163.