Detroit schools offer students up to $1,000 for perfect attendance as program expands
Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) paid students up to $1,000 for perfect attendance and is expanding the incentive program to middle schoolers after district officials say it successfully reduced chronic absenteeism.
Now in its second year, the "Perfect Attendance Pays" initiative targets the winter months—running from Jan. 5 to March 20 —when attendance historically dips across the district.
"DPSCD is continuing the Perfect Attendance Pays initiative for the 2026–27 school year for high school students and expanding it to include middle school students. At the middle school level, parents of eligible students with perfect attendance during each five-day cycle will receive a $50 gift card," a district spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Friday.
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District officials clarified that the financial incentives are not funded by taxpayers or standard state educational aid.
"The incentive is funded through interest generated through District funds awaiting to be used for facility projects. Federal and state revenue is not used to fund the incentive, nor is the incentive offered on fall or spring count days," the spokesperson added.
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Detroit Public Schools has been hit hard by a national chronic absenteeism epidemic, recording a 60.9% chronic absentee rate for the 2024–25 school year.
According to Sarah Winchell Lenhoff, director of the Detroit Partnership for Education Equity and Research at Wayne State University, more than half of Detroit students regularly miss class. Lenhoff defines chronic absenteeism as missing 10% or more of the school year—equivalent to 18 or more days in a standard 180-day calendar.
District officials told Fox News Digital that attendance metrics in high schools have improved since launching the incentive program.
"This initiative has already been proven with our students and families to reduce chronic absenteeism," the district spokesperson said.
"Specifically, high school chronic absenteeism declined by 7 percentage points two years ago when the incentive was first offered and another 2 percentage points last year. We also believe that the incentive has contributed to the District being named as being in the 90th percentile with reducing chronic absenteeism since the pandemic as compared to districts nationally, based on the Education Recovery Scorecard recently released by Harvard/Stanford."
District promotional materials and social media flyers detail how payouts work, noting that eligibility is calculated weekly across five-day cycles, with eligible high schoolers earning up to $100 per week in gift cards or cash equivalents toward the $1,000 season cap.
"Strong attendance matters: Students are three to five times more likely to be at and above grade level if they miss 18 or fewer days of school per year. Families, your support is essential. Help your student take advantage of District resources and remove barriers to consistent attendance," the district posted on Facebook.
School districts nationwide continue to grapple with severe post-pandemic attendance drops, prompting several urban systems to experiment with direct financial incentives, rideshare vouchers, and community outreach to bring students back to the classroom.