Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_01Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_01On a cold and drizzly morning, children who attend elementary school PS 104 Bayswater in Far Rockaway, Queens wait for the #NoExcusesBus to take them to school on December 12, 2016. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_02Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_02A Rockaway Rising employee tries to cheer up a student by hand delivering him to the front door of the school on December 5, 2016. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_04Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_04A student takes a ride on the #NoExcusesBus on December 5, 2016. This particular morning, the bus made three trips between the apartment complex on Dix Avenue and the elementary school PS104. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_06Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_06Holley hugs a student while waiting for the #NoExcusesBus that runs from an apartment complex on Dix Avenue in Far Rockaway, Queens, to elementary school PS104. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_07Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_07A student adjusts his hood in the drizzling rain outside school. Before the #NoExcusesBus, children who were ineligible for the city's public school bus and had to walk to school would sometimes miss school if it was raining or snowing. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_08Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_08Holley greets a student who's come out to get a ride to school. In this particular district, students above the 2nd grade who live less than a mile from school are ineligible for the city school bus, which has an affect on attendance and chronic absenteeism. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_11Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_11A student waits for the #NoExcusesBus to leave for PS 104 Bayswater. The bus sometimes makes three trips in the morning. On this particular day, they drove nearly 75 children to school. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism12Battling Chronic School Absenteeism12Two students who ride the #NoExcusesBus wait for Holley to finish a conversation with their mother. Rockaway Rising's approach to chronic absenteeism is to combat poverty as well, and attend to the needs of the childrens' families in whatever capacity they need. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_13Battling Chronic School Absenteeism_13Meaghan Holley, Director of Rockaway Rising, plays with a student while they wait for her older sister to finish getting ready. Holley started the #NoExcusesBus in March 2016 when she learned that nearly 70 school-age who lived in one apartment complex were defined as chronically absent, which means missing two or more days of school a month. Photo: Becky Holladay Read the full story
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