Washoe County School District highlights drop in chronic absenteeism, names September Attendance Awareness Month

The Washoe County School District board of trustees on Sept. 9 heard a district presentation that tied measurable reductions in chronic absenteeism to school-level strategies and community partnerships and adopted a proclamation declaring September Attendance Awareness Month.

District Chief Student Services Officer Paul LaMarca opened the presentation by stressing the link between attendance and learning: “attendance matters,” he said, noting national research and the district’s strategic plan alignment. Rochelle Murillo, director of intervention, told trustees the district rolled out a comprehensive chronic-absence plan in 2024 that included professional development, toolkits for principals, reengagement specialists and school-based attendance officers placed to support every campus.

The district credited community partners with helping remove barriers to daily attendance. Kurt Misha of PBS Reno described a public-service campaign the station produced and aired for the district and its partners, saying the spots were “vitally important” to reaching families. Misha said the campaign aired 4,187 times on PBS channels, a placement value the station estimated at about $114,000, and that Nevada broadcasters ran a combined 13,546 announcements statewide after the station distributed the spots to the Nevada Broadcasters Association.

Katie Simon Holland, leader of the Strengthen Our Communities task force, described a public–private effort that has raised over $1 million in commitments to expand family resource centers and fund reengagement specialists in middle schools. “We all own this,” she told the board, explaining the task force’s focus on nonpunitive supports such as transportation, health services and outreach rather than suspension or criminal penalties.

Trainer Middle School principal Lucy Dugan and assistant principal Dana Roberts described school strategies that helped reduce Trainer’s chronic-absence rate by 10 percent last year. Roberts said staff monitored chronic-absence data daily, made positive outreach calls, used home visits when needed and linked students to extracurricular activities. Roberts also described a walking-school-bus pilot: staff and volunteers meet students at Pat Baker Park, about a half-mile from the school, and walk them together across busy streets; attendance at the walk started at about 15 students the first day, peaked near 50 for a day and has stabilized around 20 regular participants.

District and community leaders emphasized a shift away from punitive responses. Katie Simon Holland and board members said the district’s reengagement specialists and family resource centers focus on addressing underlying barriers such as housing, health care, transportation and bullying. Superintendent Joe Ernst read the board’s proclamation recognizing September as Attendance Awareness Month, calling for trauma-informed, prevention-first approaches rather than punitive discipline for absences.

Trustees praised the work and encouraged continued attention to kindergarten attendance and upper-grade seat-time issues highlighted by staff, then posed questions about sustaining funding and measuring academic effects of improved attendance. Staff said some legislative changes may be needed to address lower kindergarten attendance and seat-time rules for upper high school grades.

The district said it will continue the community task force work, expand partnerships with Community Health Alliance for on-site care at some schools and evaluate the media and school-based interventions to sustain and deepen gains.