2014 was a year flush with activity: More districts and states are calculating chronic absence. More practitioners joined our webinars and downloaded our tools. More researchers are documenting the corrosive effects of absenteeism and demonstrating solutions.

As we launch into 2015, Attendance Works has already decided on our New Year’s resolutions:

• Health: We plan to work with doctors, nurses and other health partners to address health concerns that contribute to so many absences.
• Children of color: We plan to work with school districts and federal officials to unpack why young children from communities of color are too often missing more school than their peers and find out what can improve their attendance.
• Preschool: We plan to expand materials that emphasize the importance of attendance even before kindergarten.
• State action: We plan to work with burgeoning state networks to guide policy development and create peer-learning opportunities. In California, that means helping more districts meet state requirements to calculate and address chronic absence.

We hope you can be part of these efforts: Join our webinars, use our free tools to crunch your data or participate in Attendance Awareness Month. Above all share with us and with your peers what is working for you and what obstacles you face.