having free washers and dryers. How Two Simple Laundry Machines Increased Attendance of Underprivileged Students by Over 90%
...According to TODAY Parents, the Whirlpool Care Counts program provided 17 schools in low-income areas with a washing machine and dryer each, along with all the necessary items: laundry bags, garbage bags, detergent and fabric softener. Those schools then chose a group of students who had each missed more than 10 days of school to bring their clothes and have them washed while they sat in class. It might not seem like the promise of clean laundry would be a big motivator to attend school and pay attention, but not only did the program work, it worked really, really well.
Out of all the children who participated in the program, 93% of them increased their attendance rates in the first year, according to the Whirlpool Care Counts website. In fact, Whirlpool reported that, “at-risk participants attended almost two more weeks of school than the previous year,” with the average number of days missed dropping from 11.9 to only 3.5.
But sheer attendance numbers alone weren’t the only things that improved significantly. Teachers at participating schools reported an 89% increase in classroom participation, 95% increase in students’ motivation, and a 95% increase in extra-curricular activities. During the first year, each student washed an average of 50 loads of laundry at school using the Whirlpool machines....
...According to TODAY Parents, the Whirlpool Care Counts program provided 17 schools in low-income areas with a washing machine and dryer each, along with all the necessary items: laundry bags, garbage bags, detergent and fabric softener. Those schools then chose a group of students who had each missed more than 10 days of school to bring their clothes and have them washed while they sat in class. It might not seem like the promise of clean laundry would be a big motivator to attend school and pay attention, but not only did the program work, it worked really, really well.
Out of all the children who participated in the program, 93% of them increased their attendance rates in the first year, according to the Whirlpool Care Counts website. In fact, Whirlpool reported that, “at-risk participants attended almost two more weeks of school than the previous year,” with the average number of days missed dropping from 11.9 to only 3.5.
But sheer attendance numbers alone weren’t the only things that improved significantly. Teachers at participating schools reported an 89% increase in classroom participation, 95% increase in students’ motivation, and a 95% increase in extra-curricular activities. During the first year, each student washed an average of 50 loads of laundry at school using the Whirlpool machines....
