Stay in the Game! Attendance Network welcomes FC Cincinnati as new partner

3/10/2024

The Stay in the Game! Attendance Network announced FC Cincinnati as a partner to improve student engagement and attendance. With this addition, more districts throughout Ohio will have a professional sports team to support their attendance efforts for the 2024-2025 school year. By joining the Network, FC Cincinnati will partner with the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce, Cleveland Browns Foundation, Columbus Crew, and Harvard’s Proving Ground to support Ohio districts and schools in improving attendance. Interested districts can learn more about the program and apply to join. The deadline to join the Network is March 15.
 
For the last five years, the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network has worked to reduce chronic absenteeism rates by supporting districts in developing localized attendance campaigns and providing tools to improve student attendance. These tools include the online Attendance Playbook, recognition for improvement and incentives, video messages, classroom visits from players and mascots, and community projects like football field and mini pitch installations, all with the goal of getting students excited about attending school and learning.
 
Launched in 2019, the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network works to campaign, connect, and convene with experts to support Ohio schools. The network currently supports 57 districts and nearly 269,000 students through localized, data-informed attendance campaigns aimed at raising awareness of the importance of school attendance as a foundation for student success and identifying barriers to attendance.