#  Come Back…Be Here: Evaluating Strategies to Improve Student Attendance through a Rural Research Network 

 



 file\_download 

 **Size:** 603.94 KB 

 **Format:** PDF 

 **Date:** 03/13/2026 

 

 [ Download Resource file\_download ](/sites/g/files/omnuum9881/files/2026-03/Come%20Back_Be%20Here_December%202024.pdf) 





This paper evaluates a personalized attendance messaging intervention implemented through NCRERN’s Rural Research Network across eight rural districts in New York and Ohio during the 2020–21 school year. Using a multi-site, blocked randomized controlled trial with more than 8,000 students in Grades 1–12, the study finds that assigning caregivers to receive periodic, personalized digital messages about their child’s attendance reduced cumulative absences by 2.4%, with 86% certainty that the intervention decreased absences. Effects were consistent across districts, student subgroups, grade levels, and message delivery modes (email, text, or both), suggesting broad applicability in rural settings. Conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, the study demonstrates that even amid significant disruption, low-cost informational “nudge” interventions can meaningfully improve student attendance. The paper also highlights how the Rural Research Network model enables rigorous causal research in rural contexts by pooling data across small districts, aligning interventions with district priorities, and supporting continuous improvement cycles.



 

 

 See also:- [ Research and Reports ](/resource-type/research-report)
- [ Researcher ](/audience/researcher)
- [ Attendance ](/focus-areas/attendance)
- [ National Center for Rural Education Research Networks (NCRERN) ](/projects/national-center-rural-education-research-networks-ncrern)
- [ 2024 ](/year/2024)
- [ K12 ](/sector/k12)