Camden Elementary School -

It’s well-known that good academic outcomes begin, in part, with good school attendance habits. Yet, many school districts across the country have found some difficulty in maintaining those habits in the years following pandemic-related shifts in the learning model.

In New York alone, the rate of chronic absenteeism stood at 18.6 percent of students in the 2018-19 school year. For the 2021-22 and 2022-23 school years, that percentage rose to around 30 percent statewide. Chronic absenteeism is defined by missing at least 10 percent of days in a school year, and even missing just two days a month puts a student over that mark.

With the early years especially important to long-term success, Camden Elementary School decided to implement a goal-oriented approach that would empower students and families to make attendance a priority. The school’s concept came to life in the form of the new CES Power Paw program.

The Power Paw is a school-wide challenge aimed at creating positive attendance habits and helping the entire school community to hold each other accountable for being in school on time each day. Under the program, a daily goal of 93% student attendance was set school-wide. Each time the student body met that goal, they earned one Power Paw.

To encourage consistency, a goal was set from the beginning of October, to right before the holiday recess. From October 1st until December 18th, students needed to receive a Power Paw on 40 out of 50 possible school days, and they reached that goal. In exchange, students were treated with a movie and a popcorn party at noon hour on Wednesday, December 18th.

As enjoyable as that may be, the greatest rewards will come in the long run. Consistent attendance opens many doors to opportunity throughout a student’s education and into adulthood. In the interim, the Camden Elementary School administrative team is happy to reflect on an exciting milestone.

“We are so incredibly proud of our students,” Principal Craig Ferretti and Assistant Principal Amanda Mitchell said. “They have shown up each day while making amazing growth and gains academically, behaviorally and socially.”

Camden Elementary School hopes students enjoy their break, and that they come back ready to learn each day as the year continues!