Prior to the pandemic, chronic absenteeism percentages in Georgia schools hovered around 12 percent. State school officials believe the effects of the pandemic continue to have a negative impact on schools as a result of ongoing attendance issues. In fact, officials say the rate of chronic absenteeism has increased significantly and for the past 3 years has sustained a consistent rate above 20 percent.
While this increase is consistent with that of the rest of the nation, the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) is launching several initiatives to tackle chronic absenteeism.
“Chronic absenteeism” refers to the number of students missing 10 percent or more of school days for any reason, divided by the number of students enrolled. Georgia’s current chronic absenteeism rate is 20.7 percent. And while this is the 17th-best rate in the nation, state school officials are aiming for continued improvement.
“Particularly as we continue to focus on academic recovery after the instructional disruptions of the pandemic, it’s essential that students are attending school daily and accessing the full curriculum,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “We are committed to combating chronic absenteeism and ensuring schools are equipped to reduce barriers to attendance and address issues that cause students and families to disengage from school. This is a key area of focus for our Office of Whole Child Supports heading into the new year.”
Recently, GaDOE’s Office of Whole Child Supports hosted an Attendance Summit for Georgia agencies and policymakers. Representatives of multiple state agencies, education organizations, and school districts, attended the summit which was held to “increase awareness and foster collaborative relationships in an effort to promote next steps to reduce chronic absenteeism.”
Future work sessions and engagement with school partners are planned to facilitate long-term changes.
“While Georgia’s chronic absenteeism rate has started to decrease, our state still has work to do,” said Justin Hill, GaDOE’s Deputy Superintendent for Whole Child Supports. “The Summit was a step toward building a foundation for improvement in the area of attendance, and with the focus and efforts of policymakers, educators, parents, and community members, we can make a significant change.”
GaDOE has also launched an Attendance Dashboard to provide real-time data to schools and districts. The dashboard allows districts and schools to examine subgroup, grade-level, and yearly data, find potential root causes, and determine next steps. Users have access to comparison data, average daily attendance calculations, chronic absentee rates, and subgroup-specific information for the last six years.
The Office of Whole Child Supports also partnered with Georgia Public Broadcasting to develop a Chronic Absenteeism Public Service Announcement.
Moving forward, GaDOE plans to use Stronger Connections grant funds to decrease chronic absenteeism in high-needs school districts in Georgia. The project will include a partnership with UGA’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government to conduct a statewide analysis of chronic absenteeism; meetings of a monthly Attendance Advisory Group; and workshop days, professional learning, and coaching for high-need school districts.
