DA establishes attendance reward pilot-program at Maynard Elementary

Charme Allen

Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen is pleased to announce a new Attendance Reward Program where the DA’s Office Community Affairs Unit will provide new bicycles and helmets for students at Maynard Elementary School who have achieved perfect attendance for the fall or spring semesters of the 2015-2016 school year.

Allen will announce the program to students at an assembly at Maynard Elementary on Friday, August 21, at 1:45 P.M.

As part of the Truancy Reduction Initiative, the new Attendance Reward Program will hopefully create an incentive for students and give them a goal to reach throughout the year.

Evidence shows that students who regularly come to class and complete their education are far less likely to enter the criminal justice system. Missing even one day of school can be detrimental to students. This new program rewards students who go above and beyond the normal attendance policy.

The pilot program will be limited to students at Maynard Elementary but will hopefully expand to other schools in the future.

Anyone interested in donating to the Attendance Reward Program can contact Community Affairs Coordinator Jackie Myers at 865-215-2515 or jackie.myers@knoxcounty.org.

Upon taking office a year ago, General Allen launched the Community Affairs Unit in an effort to put into action the second prong of her dual goal of being “Tough on Crime, Smart on Prevention.” This innovative Unit provides a direct link between the District Attorney’s Office and the citizens of Knox County through involvement in community outreach, education of the public, and partnership with other agencies.

This Unit serves to foster communication between the District Attorney General’s Office and the Knoxville community, and ultimately, it serves to prevent crime at its source.