DETROIT – The Detroit Public Schools Community District is seeing attendance improve, and part of that increase is thanks to a new incentive program that gives students the chance to receive a $200 gift card for perfect attendance.
For about an hour, Local 4 heard directly from school superintendent Dr. Nikolai Vitti, who said he’s proud of the students and the staff who’ve made it happen.
“It is amazing. We came up through DPS, so to see all the accomplishments and things they are doing, it’s wonderful,” said Vershawn Anderson.
Anderson is a parent who is glad to see that Detroit Public Schools Community District is on the upswing. Attendance and student performance are improving, and the district’s stats are heading in the right direction.
“I had another child that graduated from DPS, and I also graduated from DPS, and my son is going to be a new graduate from DPS,” Anderson said.
Part of that increase in attendance is thanks to the new incentive program offering students a $200 gift card for every two weeks they have perfect attendance.
The money comes from the accrued interest gained from the district’s bank accounts.
Since returning from winter break, about 1,800 more students have had perfect attendance than in previous semesters.
“If students miss 18 or fewer days, they’re three to five times more likely to be at and above grade level for literacy and math and on the SAT,” said Vitti.
Student performance and test scores are also on the rise, with students doing much better in almost every subject.
“Highest we’ve ever been. Higher than we were before the pandemic. Completely rebounded. DPSCD has completely eliminated learning walls from the pandemic,” Vitti said.
But the work is not done. Dr. Vitti has many more goals, including creating a new diploma structure that will allow some students to graduate with their associate’s degree, setting them apart from many other students in the state.
“It’s a lot of talented kids here. So I think that’s gonna boost Detroit kids even higher than they’ve ever been. Other cities will model after it,” said parent Herbert Anderson.
Vitti says the district is working on other facilities within the district that need the work as well.
