NORTHRIDGE : Holmes Recognized for High Attendance

Holmes Middle School in Northridge has been recognized as having the highest attendance rate for a middle school in the Los Angeles Unified School District for the 1993-94 school year.

Runners-up from the San Fernando Valley were Frost Middle School in Granada Hills, which had the second-highest rate, Byrd Middle School in Sun Valley, which took fourth, and the fifth place Portola Middle School in Tarzana.

School board representative Jeff Horton said that attendance is one of the best indicators of a school’s success or failure. “It’s basic and sound and relatively easy to measure,” Horton said.

“Nothing really matters if the kids don’t show up at school.”

Holmes principal Ron Twombly attributed the 92.4% attendance rate at his school to the strong commitment of teachers and staff workers, and to recognition given to students with good records.

At Holmes, students with perfect attendance are recognized on a monthly basis and are awarded with tickets to amusement parks or ice cream parties.

School budgets are determined by student attendance, noted district budget director Mark Shrager. “Our primary concern is for the student: The better the student’s attendance, the more they will get out of their educational experience,” Shrager said.

“But in addition, by far the largest share (of a school’s money) comes directly from student attendance,” Shrager said.

Other Valley schools that were recognized for their attendance rates were Castlebay Elementary School in Northridge, which had the third highest elementary school attendance in the district, and Woodland Hills’ El Camino Real and Chatsworth high schools that had the fifth and third, respectively, best records among district high schools.