The result: All five schools boasted attendance rates above 96 percent Wednesday, the release stated.

“One thing reinforced during the pandemic is that students learn best inside our school buildings with MUSD’s amazing teachers and staff,” McFarland Unified School District Superintendent Aaron Resendez said. “Our teams at Browning Road STEAM Academy, Kern Avenue, and Horizon Elementary schools, McFarland Junior High School, and McFarland High School Early College did a fantastic job of planning a great day of activities for students and raising awareness about the importance of attendance.”

According to the early attendance date from each school on Wednesday, Browning Road STEAM Academy, Kern Avenue, and Horizon elementary schools recorded 99 percent attendance. McFarland Junior High School and McFarland High School Early College had 98 and 97 percent, respectively.

Data from the California Department of Education showed MUSD’s attendance rate increased 16 percentage points to 87.6 percent for 2020-2021. The state did not post attendance data for the pandemic-stricken year of 2019-2020.