Community Toolkit to Address and Eliminate Chronic Absenteeism

Community Toolkit to Address and Eliminate Chronic Absenteeism

Chronic absenteeism—or missing at least 10 percent of school days in a school year for any reason, excused, or unexcused—is a primary cause of a low academic achievement and a powerful predicator of those students who may eventually drop out of school. An estimated five to 5M-7.5M students miss 18 or more days of school each year, or nearly an entiure month or more of school, which puts them at significant risk of falling behind academically and failing to graduate from high school. Because they miss so much school, millions of young people miss out on opportunities in post-secondary education and good careers.

Chronic absenteeism is also an equity issue, and it is particularly prevalent among students who are low-income, students of color, students with disabilities, students who are highly mobile, and/or juvenille justice-involved youth—in other words, those who already tend to face significant challenges and for whom school is particularly beneficial. Moreover, chronic absenteeism is often confused with truancy, which can lead to disproportionate suspensions and explusions from school and inappropriate referrals of students and families to law enforcement.

Explore the below resources for more information about chroic absenteeism: