Transylvania County Schools is joining schools across the country this September in recognizing Attendance Awareness Month, an effort to highlight how important daily attendance is to student success.
Jessica Sharp, the district's dropout prevention coordinator, said Transylvania County Schools has focused on attendance for years because of what the data shows about its connection to student outcomes.
"Transylvania County Schools has been proactive about attendance for many years because we know that attendance is an important indicator of student success," Sharp said. "We devote a tremendous amount of time and resources to understanding why students are absent, finding ways to encourage and reward regular attendance, and helping families address the barriers that may be keeping their children from school."
Sharp said the district's approach centers on encouragement and early support rather than punishment. Schools monitor attendance closely so that concerns can be caught early, before absences turn into a larger barrier to a student's success. Schools also offer incentives such as prizes, school-wide recognition and exam exemptions to reward students for good or improved attendance.
"We want students to understand that showing up to school consistently is an accomplishment worth recognizing and that their daily attendance matters," Sharp said.
State law does require schools to act when absences become excessive, and the district has measures in place to address those cases. Sharp said those measures are meant to be a last resort.
"When supportive efforts are not enough, the district does have measures in place to address excessive unexcused absences," Sharp said. "However, these measures are intended as a last resort, and are largely dictated by state law. Within these constraints, when compared with many other districts, Transylvania County Schools is among some of the least punitive to attendance measures, with our focus remaining on identifying the reasons behind absences and working with students and families to improve attendance."
Sharp said regular attendance gives students far more than access to instruction. School is also where students build relationships, develop social and life skills, access support services, take part in extracurricular activities and discover interests that can shape their future.
"Every day a student is in school is another opportunity to learn, connect, and grow in countless ways that will serve them throughout their lives," Sharp said. "When students are frequently absent, they miss valuable learning time as well as many of the experiences, relationships, and opportunities that are important parts of growing into successful adults."
The district has made measurable progress. Countywide chronic absenteeism has declined every year since 2021-22, falling to 20.03% in 2024-25, a rate well below the state average.
Brevard High School earned recognition from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction as a "Promising Practice" after a sharp drop in chronic absenteeism during the 2022-23 school year. The school's approach emphasized early identification, consistent communication with families, addressing barriers to attendance and holding students accountable while providing support. Sharp said lessons learned at Brevard High School have since shaped attendance practices across the district.
The district's work has also drawn attention beyond Transylvania County. An NC Insider article recently cited the county as an example other education leaders could learn from in getting more students into the classroom regularly.
Three district schools, T.C. Henderson Elementary, Rosman High School and Brevard High School, were named Attendance Bright Spots by the state for the 2024-25 school year, recognizing their unusually strong progress in reducing chronic absenteeism from pandemic-era highs.
As Attendance Awareness Month gets underway, district leaders are encouraging families to make daily attendance a priority and to reach out to their child's school if they need support addressing barriers to getting to class.