As part of the school improvement plan submitted to the district, administration is making efforts to lower the chronic absenteeism rate this school year. 

Post COVID-19, there was an increase in students not showing up to school across the Clark County School District (CCSD), contributing to the recent passing of Nevada Senate Bill 460, a major school accountability bill. Last year, 13.8% of Southwest students were chronically absent, meaning that over 200 students were missing for at least 10% of school days that year. 

“I think our goal right now would be to get it back to 11% or 10%,” Assistant Principal Eric Gant said. “I think that’s a fair goal. If you can gain 3% that’s pretty good. So our hope, and I feel pretty confident, is that we’re gonna do a better job this year.”

The high rates of absences have some teachers concerned about how it may impact students’ ability to learn. 

“Teaching with students being absent is incredibly challenging,” English 9 Honors teacher Kristina Haley said. “Once we are moving on to other things, those kids are stuck because they haven’t done whatever is the necessary step to be able to move on with the rest of us…You can’t get that time back.” 

To push for improved attendance rates, the school is implementing plans to hold students accountable for their attendance and reduce the number of unexcused absences. 

“[The attendance secretary], Ms. Lordis, and I are really working on [keeping] students aware that they need to bring their notes when they’re out,” Gant said. “If they’re out for a couple days and they’ve not brought in a note in two days, Ms. Lordis is calling them up to say, ‘Hey, where’s your note?’…We also really encourage students, if they do see a doctor or dentist, or they miss school for any kind of medical reason, to bring in a note from that doctor, because those medical notes don’t count against us for chronic absenteeism.”

With these plans in place, some students have expressed wanting to prioritize their school attendance this year. 

“I feel like the work that I put in every day is eventually gonna lead up to something bigger than me, especially for my dreams and aspirations beyond high school,” senior Ryan Navarrete-Pak said. “Coming to school definitely helps [with] that, and it’s also a great opportunity to meet new people.”

Along with keeping students aware of the expectations for when they miss school, the school is also ensuring that parents are informed of the expectations for their students’ attendance. 

“[Having] a lot of communication with parents [has been helping],” Gant said. “I put something about chronic absenteeism in the newsletter that goes home every two weeks. I just updated our percentage compared to how we were two weeks ago, how we were this week and how we were last year. [We’re] really being transparent on where we’re doing well and where we need to do better…and just involving all the stakeholders.”

Administration hopes that improving student attendance rates will enhance academic performance. 

“The simple fact of it all is if we improve the attendance rate, that means more students are here, and that just helps learning,” Gant said. “It’s really important to me and other admins, and I’m sure the teachers, to create an environment where kids enjoy coming. I know school is not everybody’s favorite all the time…but I definitely want to do my best when students are here for six hours a day [to make sure] they know that they’re appreciated for being here.”