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Persistent high levels of absenteeism are slowing students’ academic recovery after the disruptions to schooling brought on by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic (Dewey et al., 2025). Even several years after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, heightened levels of chronic absenteeism continue to be one of district leaders’ top concerns.
Artistic crests representing wolf dens are everywhere at West Elementary: in school windows, hallways, in the cafeteria, and on T-shirts, banners and artwork.
They symbolize the school’s new den system, with the names Lobos, Mahigan, Tikkani and Obahoshe — all indigenous words for “wolves” — into which the school’s 500 students in grades kindergarten through fourth grade are divided.
Marlee-Ami Sierz said she knows how difficult it can be to struggle with mental health issues.
The Grand Rapids University Preparatory Academy junior sat on a student panel Tuesday in Lansing titled “Addressing Mental Health Through Authentic Student Voice.” She told educators and legislators what schools can do to reach students like her who may need a kind word, support or just to feel seen.
I hated to go underwater when I was a kid. I wasn’t the most proficient swimmer, but I could make my way across a pool without panicking. But venturing under the surface? Just the thought of it made my legs conveniently cramp up, ensuring me a seat on the side of the pool.
As students stream into her classroom at Grandville Middle School and find their seats, Courtney Gritter switches off the overhead lights and switches on a colorful disco ball in the corner of the room.
In the State of Michigan, there is currently no uniform measurement of students’ wellbeing nor a common way to evaluate student engagement and the impact of related services and interventions for students beyond standardized test scores.
Recent polling highlighted at the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators' (MASA) fall conference found 75% believe school districts should adopt policies designed to increase student engagement in K-12 schools.
EPIC-MRA poll data released in September at the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators (MASA) Fall Conference in Traverse City, Michigan, soundly validates the need for work surrounding student engagement, ranking it as an important component of student assessment.