Detroit Public Schools Community District will relaunch its Perfect Attendance Pays program for the 2026 Winter Term, offering high school students $100 gift cards for each full five-day week of perfect attendance from Jan. 5 to March 20, up to $1,000 total. The initiative responds to a 60.9% absenteeism rate in 2024–2025 and aims to keep students engaged when attendance typically drops. Officials cited research showing students who miss 18 or fewer days are three to five times more likely to be at or above grade level. The district also encouraged families to use support resources to remove barriers to attendance.
Detroit Schools Offer Up to $1,000 in Gift Cards for Perfect Winter Attendance
Detroit Public Schools for a second year is offering up to $1000 in cash payments as a reward for attending class.
Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is relaunching its Perfect Attendance Pays initiative for the 2026 Winter Term, offering high school students weekly $100 gift cards for each full five-day week of perfect attendance — up to $1,000 total. The program runs from Jan. 5 through March 20, 2026.
The district framed the incentive as a direct response to steep declines in attendance during the winter months and a broader absenteeism challenge. DPSCD reported a 60.9% absenteeism rate for the 2024–2025 school year and said the program is intended to re-engage students when they are most likely to miss class.
How the Program Works
Under Perfect Attendance Pays, every DPSCD high school student can earn a $100 gift card for each full five-day week in which they have perfect attendance. Weekly eligibility is determined over the five school days, and qualifying students will receive the gift cards weekly. Payments are capped at $1,000 per student for the duration of the winter term.
According to the director of the Detroit Partnership for Education Equity and Research, who studied chronic absenteeism in Michigan statewide, more than 50% of Detroit students regularly miss class.
"Research consistently shows that regular attendance is one of the strongest predictors of academic success," the district said in a Dec. 4 press release. "Students who miss 18 or fewer days per year are 3 to 5 times more likely to perform at or above grade level and be college-ready."
Officials said the incentive complements broader efforts to address chronic absenteeism, which research defines as missing 10% or more of school days. Sarah Lenhoff of the Detroit Partnership for Education Equity and Research at Wayne State University — who has studied chronic absenteeism statewide — noted that more than half of Detroit students regularly miss class, illustrating the scale of the challenge.
Support For Families
The district urged families to use available resources and help remove barriers to consistent attendance, noting that family engagement and support services remain essential components of any attendance strategy. DPSCD circulated flyers and social media posts explaining program details and encouraging participation.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many U.S. school districts have experimented with incentives and other strategies to restore pre-pandemic attendance levels and keep students academically engaged. DPSCD’s renewed Perfect Attendance Pays program represents one such approach aimed at improving short-term attendance and helping sustain learning momentum through the winter months.
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