Lorain Bilingual Academy Cuts Chronic Absenteeism by Nearly 20%
A member of the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network, this K–8 Lorain school turned relationship-building and a Cleveland Browns partnership into record attendance gains.
Key Findings
Lorain Bilingual Academy posted a record drop in chronic absenteeism — and did it by building relationships.
With an attendance strategy grounded in relationship-building, Lorain Bilingual Academy has the data to prove that students succeed when everyone is bought into the work.
As a member of the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network, the K–8 school in Lorain, Ohio cut chronic absenteeism by nearly 20% in a single school year — thanks to Stay in the Game! strategies, support, and a partnership with the Cleveland Browns.
A strategy built on relationships
Head of School Jay Saez puts it simply: “As a principal, I’ve seen firsthand the positive impact Stay in the Game! has had on our school community. Their partnership has helped us make attendance a priority, engaging families in meaningful ways, and celebrate students for showing up each day.”
That work is built on trust: seeing parents as partners in their student’s success, boosting teacher morale, and bringing the whole community in around the importance of showing up.
Incentives help, too. Rewards from the Cleveland Browns partnership — t-shirts, mascot visits — make showing up something to celebrate, and they stretch a small school’s budget further.
Peer learning and a Playbook worth sticking to
No matter a school’s size, attendance is a challenge. Lorain Bilingual pointed to Stay in the Game!’s monthly peer learning sessions as one of the strongest resources supporting its work — a chance to compare notes with other schools facing the same thing.
The team also leaned on the campaign Playbook, citing its side-by-side view of attendance goals and actuals as its greatest tool for tracking progress and informing strategy.
The results earned recognition: Stay in the Game! honored Lorain Bilingual with its Attendance Action Award at the network’s annual conference.
Interested in evidence-based attendance strategies for your school or district?
Contact us to learn more about the Stay in the Game! model.
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