School attendance matters — much more than you may think

By Brandon Downey

CEO, Trilogy Innovations, Inc.

There is no “secret sauce” when it comes to performing well in school, but a good place to start is the data that tells us students who show up tend to do better. An increased focus on school attendance in West Virginia would likely have positive results, as we work toward the further development of economic diversity in the state.

We have many contributing factors to low educational performance, but we need a solid starting point. With the new school year here, a focus on attendance could be the momentum we need to address those other issues.

Attendance is a particularly critical topic in West Virginia, a rural state that has historically not ranked well and, in fact, currently ranks 46th in Pre-K-12 education, according to U.S. News & World Report. Additionally, West Virginia has one of the highest rates of chronic Pre-K-12 school absenteeism in the nation.

That statistic becomes even more important when you compare common industries between West Virginia and its neighboring states. Industries such as technology, manufacturing, tourism, and agri-tourism — common sectors in the Mountain State and its neighbors — can certainly advance economic diversity. Advancing means preparing students, and West Virginia lags behind Virginia (#10), Ohio (#15), Pennsylvania (#19), Maryland (#21), and Kentucky (#26). Graduating qualified K-12 students who can contribute to those and other industries could increase competitiveness, as we can use this and other attractive characteristics of West Virginia to draw and/or keep them here.

While there is no absolute data confirming that students perform better because they have great attendance, statistics strongly suggest it. Education officials and analysts have long connected attendance to results. FutureEd, an independent think tank located within Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy, wrote, “Chronic absenteeism continues to be a significant issue for schools and districts nationwide. Although many states are making progress in reducing chronic absenteeism — defined as students missing 10 percent or more of the school year — they have yet to return to pre-pandemic attendance levels, which were already high in many states.”

FutureEd reported West Virginia’s absentee rates were 20% in 2018-19; 29.1% in 2021-22; 27.6% in 2022-23; and 23.5% in 2023-24. While 18 states recorded higher absenteeism in 2023-24 than West Virginia, coupling chronic absenteeism with poor rankings and educational attainment is not a good recipe for the future. None of the state’s neighbors are ranked below West Virginia in Pre-K-12 education, and only Kentucky had a higher absentee rate in 2023-24 (28%).

“Correlation strongly suggests causation. It’s impossible to prove that students performed better because they were in school every day, but it’s the logical conclusion,” FutureEd wrote.

Attendance and making sure students are in school to take full advantage of educational opportunities is something we can work on today. At Trilogy Innovations, our commitment to K-12 and higher education — which is one of our foundational pillars — is very clear: to do all we

can to help prepare future waves of successful West Virginians in the workforce and open more doors of opportunity.

Trilogy represents West Virginia’s technology sector, and we are eager to channel more West Virginia students into the industry. According to Bridge for Innovation, an initiative supported by the Information Technology Industry Council, less than 8% of West Virginia’s workforce is represented in the technology industry. However, individuals in West Virginia’s tech industry earn an average of 92% above the state’s median wage, according to the non-profit trade association Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA).

Opportunity is out there and, as a state, we need to do all we can to increase student attendance. We can use technology to present guest speakers to schools. Schools who cannot support student clubs can join with other schools so that those clubs are available and student interests can increase. But attendance has to be a priority.

Instructional materials, innovative technology tools, clubs, and tutoring programs cannot make a difference if students are not in school to take advantage of them.

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Brandon Downey is CEO of Trilogy Innovations, Inc., headquartered in Bridgeport, West Virginia, and with offices in Morgantown. A technologist and leader in the software development and systems engineering field for more than 25 years, he works with customers across federal and state governments, academia, and the natural resources industries. His passion is teaching the youth and leaders of tomorrow and helping to forge a new identity for West Virginia. A native of Charles Town, W.Va., Downey earned bachelor’s degrees in computer engineering and computer science as well as a master’s degree in software engineering at West Virginia University. Inc. Magazine has named Trilogy to the Inc. 5000 for four consecutive years.