Attendance and Re-engagement
The Challenge
The Challenge
Attendance is a top priority for state and district leaders alike, with many districts setting ambitious targets for cutting chronic absenteeism. Wake County aims to have 95% of students in school at least 95% of the time by 2028. Last year, 52.1% of its students met that mark.1 Colorado has committed to cutting chronic absenteeism in half from its pandemic high by 2027–28, and last year, 27.5% of the state’s students were still chronically absent.2 Chicago names chronic absenteeism as a 2029 goal alongside proficiency.3
And, educators are putting in real work to bring students back. Showing up doesn’t guarantee a student stays connected to their coursework, though. When that connection breaks, the cost shows up as incomplete courses and missing credits, putting a diploma at risk.
1 Wake County Public School System, 2023–2028 Strategic Plan, Goal 4 (Attendance): by 2028, WCPSS will ensure that 95% of all students are in attendance on at least 95% of their days in membership and will eliminate disparities by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status. https://www.wcpss.net/about-us/strategic-initiatives. Chronic absenteeism figure: 17.8% districtwide in 2025–26, chronic absence defined as missing 10% or more of enrolled days
2 Colorado Department of Education strategic plan goal, to be reached by 2027–28: cut the state’s chronic absenteeism rate in half from its pandemic high of 35.5% in 2021–22. https://www.cde.state.co.us/communications/oct-2025-sbe-news-release. Statewide chronic absenteeism was 27.5% in 2025–26, compared with 28.4% in 2024–25 and 22.5% in 2018–19. Chronic absence is defined as a student being absent 10 percent or more of the days enrolled during the school year, including excused and unexcused absences. Source: Colorado Department of Education student attendance and truancy data, released August 27, 2026. https://www.cde.state.co.us/cdereval/truancystatistics
3 Chicago Public Schools, Success 2029: Together We Rise, five-year strategic plan. Chronic absenteeism is a named 2029 goal alongside proficiency. https://www.cps.edu/sites/five-year-plan/priorities/
How Edmentum helps leaders re-engage students
Re-engagement starts by giving students realistic ways to stay connected to school, not just reasons to return to a seat. Edmentum helps districts create more flexible ways for students to continue learning while keeping educators and support around them.
Flexibility
Flexibility
Courseware and EdOptions Academy offer flexible virtual learning models that provide students with additional ways to continue their coursework when a traditional schedule or setting becomes a barrier.
Support
Support
Educators stay central to the model. Flexible learning works when it sits inside a supported environment with educators present and reachable, not when it replaces them.
Momentum
Momentum
Intervene before disengagement becomes course failure, help students see that progress is still possible, and preserve instructional time.
Correlational | Promising Evidence
A flexible option that didn’t lower the bar
Re-engagement only counts if it ends in meaningful credit.
In the same Baltimore analysis from Chapter 2, students using Courseware were no more likely to complete an individual course than similar peers in traditional sections, with results varying by subject and grade level.4 The option served a comparable mix of students on GPA, grade level, gender, and special education status.4
- Traditional only, four traditional in-person classes: 2.0 credits recovered
- Even mix, two traditional and two Courseware classes: 2.8 credits recovered, nearly one additional credit
4 Independent study conducted by Empirical Education, Effectiveness of Edmentum Courseware in High School Credit Recovery (April 2026). More than 10,000 credit-recovery course enrollments, Baltimore City Public Schools, summer 2024. Course-level analysis used a matched comparison design with propensity score matching, consistent with What Works Clearinghouse standards with reservations; student-level course-load analysis is correlational. Findings constitute ESSA Tier 3, evidence of promise. The study only counted successful completion of a Courseware course if a student earned a grade above 60% based on their lesson and unit activities and scores, or scored above 70% on the end of course test. It did not allow for any overrides of those criteria to be considered successful completion. On individual course completion, Courseware’s estimated average effect was −7.1 percentage points, with negative effects in core subjects, positive effects in electives, foreign language, and health, and a positive effect for 12th-grade students. The report notes that Courseware and district grades are not necessarily equivalent measures, since Courseware grades map directly from earned points while district grading may incorporate attendance or participation, and that grade-based comparisons may therefore understate Courseware students’ performance. https://www.edmentum.com/impact/efficacy-research/courseware-helped-students-recover-more-credits-in-baltimore
Comparative | Moderate Evidence
Students who completed a Courseware course had fewer absences than matched peers
Students who completed at least one Courseware course in Clover School District had 23% fewer absences and 33% fewer tardies than propensity-matched peers. Both differences were statistically significant. The study examined grades 8–12 during spring 2023, comparing 205 Courseware students with 205 matched peers, and meets WWC 5.0 standards with reservations and ESSA Tier 2 criteria.5
Rather than waiting for seniors to fail, Clover moved students who weren’t earning passing grades after nine weeks into a supported computer lab to finish their coursework. Some of them arrived believing they were already done and wouldn’t graduate.5
“When students have hope that they can pass the course, they come to school.”
5 Clover School District, South Carolina. Grades 8–12, spring 2023. 205 Courseware students compared with 205 propensity-matched peers. Meets WWC 5.0 standards with reservations and ESSA Tier 2 criteria for moderate evidence. Measured course-level absences and tardies, not chronic absenteeism as defined for state accountability. Quasi-experimental; the study does not establish the direction of the relationship and does not isolate the curriculum from the educator-supported implementation around it. Single district with an established secondary MTSS program. Mixed methods: quantitative analysis plus conversations with district leaders. Courseware sat inside an intentional support model that included flexible implementations, educator support, initial credit and credit recovery, and a condensed-credit program for seniors at risk of not graduating. https://www.edmentum.com/impact/efficacy-research/saved-by-the-bell-the-effects-of-digital-curricula-on-student-attendance-punctuality-and-academic-performance
Descriptive | Observed Patterns
Experienced educators, real connections
Edmentum Academies provide award-winning virtual instruction to students across the globe, combining expertise in virtual instruction and a commitment to student success to drive real success.
6 Edmentum Academies student survey and staffing data. Source: Edmentum Business Systems.
Customer-Reported | District-Measured Outcomes
A Chicago high school helps students recover the credits that absence costs them
At Emil G. Hirsch Metropolitan High School, chronic absenteeism leaves students short of credits even when they have already learned much of the material. The program asks for real work, not a shortcut, and students recognize that. For some of these students, this is the first high school diploma in their families.7
“This partnership allows them to take what they know, build upon it, and use it in the application phase to complete that coursework.”
7 Story reported by Emil G. Hirsch Metropolitan High School, Chicago. Illustrative; no quantified outcome is claimed. https://www.edmentum.com/impact/success-stories/credit-recovery-helping-chicago-students-recover-from-attendance-setbacks
Customer-Reported | District-Measured Outcomes
Sumner-Bonney Lake built a virtual program for students who had already disengaged
Students entered Sumner-Bonney Lake’s Alternative Learning Experience program after anxiety, depression, or medical challenges pulled them out of a traditional setting. The program serves more than 1,000 students across credit recovery, hybrid, and fully online learning, with courses customized to support language and special education needs. The district reports a 93% pass rate across all three programs.8
93% Pass Rate
8 Outcomes reported by Sumner-Bonney Lake School District, Washington. 93% pass rate across credit recovery, hybrid, and fully online programs serving more than 1,000 students. Edmentum does not independently verify district-reported data and does not attribute district outcomes to a single product. https://www.edmentum.com/resources/webinars/virtual-learning-best-practices-how-wa-district-93pct-passing-rate/
Customer-Reported | District-Measured Outcomes
Jefferson-Morgan built its own virtual academy rather than lose students to one
Jefferson-Morgan, a rural Pennsylvania district of 779 students, was losing students to statewide cyber charter schools at a cost of up to $24,000 per student. Rather than accept that, the district built JM eLearning Academy, offering live, asynchronous, and blended formats with built-in tutoring. Students split their days between in-person and online classes, attend school events, and play sports. The district reports increased student retention, expanded course offerings, and stronger communication with families.9
“Some students want to work asynchronously and just pop in for tutoring.
Others need a teacher in front of them every day.”
9 Outcomes reported by Jefferson-Morgan School District, Pennsylvania. 779 students, Pre-K through 12. Retention improvement is reported qualitatively; no figure is claimed. Partnership began in 2019. Edmentum does not independently verify district-reported data and does not attribute district outcomes to a single product. https://www.edmentum.com/impact/success-stories/increasing-student-retention-and-learning-flexibility-through-virtual-learning
Our Approach | Stated Intent
Technology should close the distance to an educator, not add to it
Edmentum’s position is that technology should bring students closer to educators, not put another barrier between them.
When a student gets stuck, help matters most while they are still in the lesson, before confusion turns into lost momentum. New this year, EdOnCall gives students a way to raise their hand in any grade 6–12 course and connect with a subject-matter-qualified educator via live video, audio, chat, and a shared whiteboard. EdOnCall is available during scheduled hours across weekdays, weekends, and evenings, included in Edmentum Academies and as a limited release add-on for Courseware.10
10 Product innovations for Back-to-School 2026–27 academic year. https://www.edmentum.com/solutions/back-to-school
Our Approach | Stated Intent
Courses districts can use with confidence
Courseware has the most approved courses of any provider for Quality Matters®, ISTE®, and NCAA® and holds 14,000+ active approvals across 50 total lists, for a 99.86% approval rate.11 Edmentum also has the most course approvals from MoCAP, MOP, iCAP, GenNET, both UC a-g Course and School Provider lists, and more. Course approval indicates that a district recognizes a course meets state or organizational expectations for credit.
11 Active course approvals as of July 31, 2026, across 50 state and national curriculum lists. Provider comparison for Quality Matters® verified against the Quality Matters public list of QM-Certified Courses, July 31, 2026. https://www.qualitymatters.org/reviews-certifications/qm-certified-courses | https://www.edmentum.com/impact/approvals/
Awards and recognition
EdOptions Academy won the CODiE Award for Best Virtual Learning Solution and Tech and Learning Awards of Excellence: Back to School in both the Primary, Secondary, and Best Virtual Learning Solution categories. Apex Academy was a CODiE finalist for Best Home Education Solution.12
12 Awards received during the 2025–26 academic year. https://www.edmentum.com/about/newsroom/?refinementList%5BnewsType%5D%5B0%5D=Awards
