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Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Chief Policy Advisor John Feinblatt and Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott today announced improvements in attendance for chronically absent students who were provided with mentors, and an expansion of the mentorship program, which last year targeted 25 schools with high rates of absenteeism. The program is part of the “Every Student, Every Day” anti-truancy campaign, which includes the Wake Up! NYC campaign of wake up calls to students from celebrities to reinforce the message that school attendance matters. The first year of the mentorship program—Success Mentors—saw chronically absent students who received mentors attend a total of more than 7,000 additional days of school this year and students in the mentorship program were more likely to see improvements in attendance when compared to chronically absent students who were not in the program. This school year, the program will double the number of chronically absent students receiving in-school Success Mentors to more than 4,000 and double the number of elementary, middle and high schools that are part of the initiative. In addition, the City’s program will add new specialized mentors to work with students returning from suspensions, placements at juvenile facilities, foster care, or temporary housing, who are especially vulnerable to chronic absenteeism. The “Every Student. Every Day” campaign was developed by the Mayor’s Interagency Task Force on Truancy, Chronic Absenteeism & School Engagement, which is overseen by John Feinblatt and Chaired by Leslie Cornfeld. The Mayor made the announcement at the High School for Teaching and The Professions in the Bronx where he was joined by Principal Gary Prince, Success Mentor Derrick Williams and other Success Mentors and students who benefited from the program.

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