One in five students in Spokane are 'chronically absent.' Can schools change that?

If there's one thing Rebecca Parrill wants everyone at Adams Elementary to understand, it's that attendance matters.

Parrill, the principal assistant, is sometimes referred to as the "attendance guru" by staffers at Adams, located on Spokane's South Hill next to Ferris High School. She's led the effort to remind Adams families every which way that kids should be in school, making the message obvious for anybody in the vicinity of the building. The electric sign by the street boasts of class attendance rates. In the visitor's office, flyers and magnets explain when a sick child should miss school and when they shouldn't. Classrooms display blue ribbons to celebrate good attendance. Even away from the building, parents get texts reminding them why kids should be in school.

https://www.inlander.com/spokane/one-in-five-students-in-spokane-are-chronically-absent-can-schools-change-that/Content?oid=19046398