STAY IN THE GAME! ALACHUA COUNTY

WHO

A Partnership between the Greater Gainesville Chamber of Commerce, Alachua County Public Schools, UF Athletic Association and Santa Fe College Athletics

WHAT

Stay in the Game! Alachua County is a pilot program designed to tackle chronic absenteeism in our schools, using a variety of tactics, and working in conjunction with our schools, principals and staff

WHEN

One school day per month per school, the Stay in the Game! teams will host a Stay in the Game! Pep Rally. Programming for the Pep Rally will include: personal success stories from our team members that emphasize the importance of showing up ready to play, the positive impact school has made in their lives and the opportunities made available, sometimes despite all odds. Additional activities are designed to foster teamwork and school pride in the students (classroom challenges, field day activities).

WHERE

Metcalfe Elementary School and Terwilliger Elementary School are the two schools participating in the pilot program.

WHY

In Alachua County, we have a chronic absenteeism rate of 28. 9 percent, which means that more than 8,179 of our 28,300 students miss too many days of school. It is no exaggeration to say that not only are these children missing out on critical skills, they are also not building the work ethic they need to become our productive employees of the future.