Chronic absenteeism rates in K-12 schools, which skyrocketed after school reopened following the COVID-19 lockdown, have fallen over the last few months nationwide and it’s possible that some states could see their rates cut in half within two years.
That’s according to a new report from EdTrust, a nonprofit that advocates for racial equity in education. The report analyzed attendance records and policies, investment plans, and disciplinary policies and practices across 22 states and Washington, D.C.
The report’s findings show that chronic absenteeism rates from the 2022-2023 academic year can be reduced by the 2027-2028 school year if states continue to follow suggestions made in the EdTrust report.
Those include conducting early interventions, where students and parents are made aware of risk of missing too many school days, after-school tutoring and using wraparound services that address students’ mental health.
The report and its recommendations are especially important for curbing the disproportionate share of Black students who are missing from school.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, Black students made up about 37% of students nationwide who were chronically absent — defined as missing at least 18 days of school — during the 2022-2023 school year. That’s compared to around 22% of white students and 33% of Hispanic students.
Experts say Black students make up a larger share of chronically absent students because they tend to face a wider combination of challenges at home and in the classroom, including lack of transportation, food insecurity, poverty, suspensions and lack of school engagement, according to Attendance Works, a nonprofit that works to reduce chronic absenteeism.
Research shows that Black students who are chronically absent from school are less likely to graduate and more likely to struggle academically and socially compared to peers with more consistent records of attendance.
Carl Felton III, an EdTrust policy analyst and the report’s author, says chronic absenteeism is not just a reflection of a school’s environment. He says it also reveals “the state of our students’ experiences and that they need some support, and [that] support looks like more than just making them go to school.”
Research shows that Black students who are chronically absent from school are less likely to graduate and more likely to struggle academically and socially compared to their peers with more consistent attendance.
Part of what states and school districts have to do to lower their chronic absenteeism rates is to monitor school attendance data, Felton said. States that collect data are better positioned to direct resources to address issues among students who are the most chronically absent.
Most of the states profiled in the state-by-state report are making progress toward EdTrust’s five-year absentee reduction goal, according to their 2024-2025 school-year data, Felton says. Those states — Alabama, California, Delaware, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Rhode Island, Washington, and West Virginia — used at least one of EdTrust’s recommendations.
But some states may not be improving as quickly as EdTrust projected to meet the goal.
Felton said he knows many people are worried that chronic absenteeism rates are still abnormally high. But he notes that even slower-than-expected progress in reducing absenteeism nationally represents thousands of students resuming their education and taking it seriously.
“That should not be taken lightly, but that should show us that the right things are happening, even if it’s not happening as fast as folks want to see it,” he says.
