How to Help Students Find Their Way Back to Regular School Attendance

This op-ed was originally published on Crain's Chicago Business site on June 24, 2024. 

How would you feel if your child was absent 10% or more of the school year? They'd miss critical lessons in reading and math, enriching art classes and social interactions that are key to their development. Inevitably, they would fall behind their peers academically and socially, making it harder to catch up and succeed.

For many students in Chicago, this scenario is all too real. According to the latest data, 2 out of 5 Chicago Public Schools students were chronically absent during the 2022-23 academic year. That means they missed 18 or more school days. The district’s 40% chronic absence rate is 16 points higher than before the pandemic, and it represents more than 2 million missed school days. Like so many social challenges impacting our city, the phenomenon is unevenly spread. Some elementary schools in well-off neighborhoods post chronic absence rates of less than 15%, even as other schools in high-need communities run above 50%. 

In the simple calculus of academic achievement, seat time matters. One study found that primary-grade students who are chronically absent are much less likely to read at grade level by the third grade — a key academic milestone. Another study on public-school students was more sobering, finding that even one year of chronic absenteeism for students in grades 8-12 increased their dropout odds by a factor of seven. 

Chronic absenteeism is not a problem unique to Chicago. Other big-city school districts are struggling with attendance challenges, too.

Many theories explain the surge in absenteeism. Habits may have been re-wired during remote learning, causing students and families to take a more casual approach to coming to school each day. Many families struggle with access to reliable transportation, or they may need their children to miss school so they can work or provide child care. And a sharp rise in youth mental health challenges affects some students’ motivation to go to school.

Just like the causes of chronic absenteeism are multifaceted, so, too, are the strategies to improve attendance. CPS has directed more dollars to wraparound services, including mental health supports, restorative practices and after-school programming. These investments were not done specifically to raise attendance, but last year the district actually saw chronic absenteeism improve compared to 2021-22, a sign that holistic supports may help in many ways.  

Another promising initiative the district has backed is intensive tutoring. The intent of offering more tutoring was to drive learning recovery efforts, but it may also be helping to improve attendance. It’s reasonable, after all, to think that students will feel more secure coming to school if they’re performing well in math and reading.  

One of the most important things schools can do to improve attendance is strengthen bonds between students and caring adults in the school building, including teachers, administrators and the staff of community partners like the organization I lead. About 40 of my colleagues at Communities In Schools work inside high-need schools across the city, providing one-on-one counseling and other intensive supports to young people who need extra help to succeed academically and socially.

We help our students set goals for improving their attendance and check in with them regularly to keep them accountable. We also stand by their side when they’re having challenges coming to school.

Some have asserted that the rise in chronic absenteeism may be a new normal that educators will need to adjust to. I’m not one who subscribes to that theory. I believe in the agency of our students and the impact of dedicated educators, parents and partner organizations to make positive change. Together, we can help our students find their way back to regular school attendance. It starts with building strong, trusting relationships.  

Jane Mentzinger is CEO of Communities In Schools of Chicago, a nonprofit that helps Chicago Public Schools students overcome obstacles to learning so that they can stay on the path to graduation and postsecondary success.