A Better Chicago Announces $1 Million in Funding from Google.org to Advance Citywide Effort to Reduce Chronic Absenteeism
CHICAGO — September 16, 2026 – A Better Chicago announced today it has received $1 million in funding from Google.org, the philanthropy arm of Google, to support Every Day Counts, the organization’s citywide initiative to reduce chronic absenteeism and improve student belonging across Chicago. The funding will help advance innovative, community-driven solutions while strengthening the technical infrastructure used to evaluate and scale successful approaches.
Every Day Counts is A Better Chicago’s $10 million, five-year initiative designed to remove barriers to attendance and create conditions for long-term success. Google.org’s support will accelerate several key components of the plan, including expanded collaboration with community-based organizations, deepening evaluation efforts in partnership with NORC, and enhancing A Better Chicago’s Youth Opportunity Dashboard to provide more accessible, actionable data on youth outcomes across Chicago.
“We are incredibly grateful to Google.org for this transformative support helping us address one of the most urgent challenges facing Chicago’s young people,” said Beth Swanson, CEO of A Better Chicago. “Regular school attendance gives students the consistency and connection they need to learn, grow, and reach their full potential. This funding allows us to invest in innovative solutions while strengthening the data and learning infrastructure needed to identify what works, scale successful approaches, and create lasting change for youth across Chicago.”
“Every young person in Chicago deserves access to the education, mentorship, and resources needed to reach their full potential,” said Mike Miller, Google VP and Chicago Site Lead. “Google is proud to support A Better Chicago’s vital work on the ground and innovative educational programs to support our local youth and develop Chicago’s future leaders and changemakers.”
The announcement was made today at Spencer Technology Academy which is partnering with BUILD, one of four community organizations selected to receive grants through the Every Day Counts initiative. Based in the Austin community, BUILD is receiving $500,000 to embed a cross-functional support team at Spencer providing mentoring, after-school programming, clinical therapy, and intensive case management for students experiencing attendance challenges.
“BUILD has always worked in schools, but lately we’ve seen younger children facing deeper trauma and greater obstacles to school success and attendance than ever before,” said Bradly Johnson, CEO of BUILD. “They need support that meets the moment, and they need it upstream, before those challenges become crises. We designed the Violence Prevention Village model to provide the wrap-around services children and families need, from directly inside the school itself. Address those challenges, and students are more likely to stay engaged and thrive into a positive future. We’re honored to launch our VPV team in partnership with Spencer.”
Illinois Senate President Don Harmon spoke at the event, emphasizing the importance of investing in Chicago youth.
“Few things are more important to our children and our future than investing in education. But students need to be in school for those investments to make a difference,” Harmon said. “Every Day Counts recognizes this reality and brings schools, community organizations and partners together with meaningful resources to help students overcome barriers, stay engaged and succeed.”
Chronic absenteeism—defined as missing 10% or more of the school year—has become one of the most significant challenges facing students since the pandemic. Nationally, nearly one in three students is chronically absent. In Chicago, the challenge is even more severe, with absenteeism disproportionately affecting students of color and neighborhoods that have experienced longstanding inequities. In 2024, 46% of Black and 43% of Hispanic Chicago Public Schools students were chronically absent, compared with 26% of white students.
Through Every Day Counts, A Better Chicago aims to identify the most effective attendance interventions and generate evidence that can help expand successful strategies through public investment—creating a roadmap for reducing chronic absenteeism in Chicago and communities across the country.
To learn more, visit https://www.abetterchicago.org/chronic-absenteeism-initiative.
About Every Day Counts
Every Day Counts is A Better Chicago’s citywide initiative to reduce chronic absenteeism and strengthen student belonging. Through a $10 million, five-year commitment, the initiative invests in innovative school- and community-based solutions designed to improve attendance, accelerate learning, and expand opportunity for young people across Chicago.
About A Better Chicago
A Better Chicago is a venture philanthropy that invests in the most promising nonprofits helping children escape poverty. We’re a supercharger. We have provided more than $50 million in unrestricted funding and management support to help the nonprofits in our portfolio grow. Our donors want to make pivotal, well-researched investments that lift the outlook for our city.