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Chronic Absenteeism State Laws: States Enact Measures to Keep Students in Class
This year, at least six states enacted laws trying to reduce the number of students chronically absent from school. The measures include requiring monitoring of absences and publicly releasing data, developing new guidance on the best ways to address the…
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Key points
- Six states have enacted laws to reduce chronic absenteeism among students.
- Utah and Oregon have implemented measures to monitor attendance and report data publicly.
- National chronic absenteeism rates show a slight decline, but some states report increases.
NewsWK — This year, at least six states across the U.S. have introduced new legislation aimed at addressing the issue of chronic absenteeism among students. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10% or more of school days in a year, which typically amounts to approximately 18 days or two days each month.
States Enact New Truancy Laws and Monitoring Policies
Among the new measures, Utah has enacted a law that establishes a student attendance monitoring system, requiring schools to identify students at risk of chronic absenteeism. Parents of students in grades 1-6 will receive notifications after five truancies, with potential consequences for non-compliance, including a class B misdemeanor.
Oregon has also taken significant steps, requiring every school district and public charter school to collect and publicly report data on student attendance. Vermont has redefined its approach to absenteeism, where truancy is categorized as 20 or more unexcused absences in a school year. This law enables state attorneys to impose fines up to $1,000 on parents of truant students if school-based interventions fail.
School Attendance Legislation Across the Nation
Tennessee’s new law mandates that any student transferring schools during the academic year will have their unexcused absences reported to their new institution, and community service requirements for parents of chronically absent students have been expanded. Additionally, Mississippi‘s recent education legislation requires the state to provide one attendance officer for every 4,000 school-aged children.
New Jersey has established a chronic absenteeism task force to explore effective solutions to this growing issue. As reported by FutureEd, a think tank at Georgetown University, over 70 bills concerning chronic absenteeism were introduced in 24 states during this legislative session. While many states have made progress in improving attendance, some, including Colorado and Oklahoma, have seen increases in missed school days.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, the national rate of chronic absenteeism stood at about 31% in the 2021-22 school year but decreased to 28% in 2022-23.
Based on reporting by Robbie Sequeira originally published by Stateline. Read the original story.
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