Mandated vaccines for school attendance鈥攁nd a parent鈥檚 ability to reject those vaccines鈥� may have been injected into the race for Florida governor.

With five months left before he鈥檚 term limited out of office, the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis Monday released a proposed regulation that would eliminate a number of vaccines required for public and private school students and make it easier for parents to opt out if vaccines conflict with 鈥渟incerely held moral or ethical belief(s).鈥�

The was released one day after Republican gubernatorial hopeful Byron Donalds, appearing on Face the Nation, said he鈥檇 like to 鈥渟tudy and really engage it鈥� before making a decision about whether to repeal statutory vaccine requirements for schools. 

a measles outbreak in southwest Florida may be happening in part because 鈥減eople have come into the country illegally鈥� and 鈥渉ave not had that vaccination schedule.鈥� 

Donalds鈥� position differs from that of Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, who earlier suggested the outbreak is . 

Florida has 142 reported measles cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That ranks Florida fifth in the number of cases behind South Carolina (670), Utah (526), Pennsylvania (321), and Virginia (176).

Meanwhile, Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Jolly鈥檚 camp said if elected Jolly would fire Ladapo.

鈥淔loridians are done with people playing politics with our children鈥檚 health. As governor David Jolly will fire the Surgeon General and follow the guidance of a new Surgeon General who embraces science and evidence-based public health,鈥� Mark Riddle, senior adviser to Jolly, said in a text to the Phoenix.

The move was quickly criticized by medical professionals.

鈥淔lorida now ranks fifth in the nation for measles cases, a reminder that vaccine-preventable diseases can return when vaccination coverage falls,Rana Alissa,associate professor of pediatrics, board-certified pediatrician and President of the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics said in a prepeared statement.&苍产蝉辫;鈥�Pediatricians have been clear that widespread childhood immunization helps keep children healthy and protects those who are most vulnerable. We urge the Department to preserve the safeguards that have protected Florida鈥檚 children and families for decades.鈥�

The debate comes after a number of Florida legislative Democrats sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Acting Director Jay Bhattacharya, and Ladapo.

In the letter, the legislators said they were concerned about communication and coordination problems surrounding infectious disease threats. 

鈥淚n recent years, our public health partners, hospitals, and doctor鈥檚 offices in our legislative districts have experienced lapses in the timely and consistent communication, guidance, and coordination needed to support effective responses to infectious disease threats,鈥� the letter, sent by Rep. Yvonne Hinson of Gainesville and signed by 14 other state House Democrats, reads.

鈥淎 renewed federal and state effort is needed to restore confidence in core public health responsibilities, including disease surveillance, clinician alerts, outbreak reporting, technical assistance, laboratory coordination, and clear public-facing risk communication. These functions are essential when new threats arise and when familiar diseases re-emerge in communities.鈥�

The new regulation isn鈥檛 a new idea. Ladapo  about a year ago, equating vaccine mandates with slavery, calling them wrong and immoral, and declaring, 鈥淵our body is a gift from God. What you put into your body is because of your relationship with your body and your God.鈥�

The changes

Florida law contains a number of immunization requirements for the young and the old. The DeSantis administration has taken aim only at the mandates for children.

The state allows exemptions for valid medical reasons and religious and certain belief systems, and, in some cases, allows personal exemptions for philosophical beliefs.

For entry and attendance in Florida schools, childcare facilities, and family daycare homes, state law requires children to be immunized for poliomyelitis, diphtheria, rubeola, rubella, pertussis, mumps, tetanus and 鈥渙ther communicable diseases as determined by rules of the Department of Health.鈥�

Under that authority, the DOH has required through regulation that children also be immunized for haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), hepatitis B, varicella (chickenpox) and pneumococcal conjugate.

The proposed new rule released Monday contains a trio of changes:

• It first eliminates vaccine mandates that aren鈥檛 required by law; 
• It  to allow opt-outs for parents and guardians who maintain immunizations conflict with their 鈥渟incerely held moral or ethical belief(s).鈥�
• It allows parents to opt out of their children鈥檚 information being input into SHOTS, the State Health Online Tracking System, a free statewide online immunization registry used to track and manage vaccine records. 

Cathy Mayfield鈥檚 18-year-old daughter, Lawson Mayfield, died of meningitis in 2009. Since then, she founded Run for Lawson, a Tallahassee foundation that partners with parents, educators, students, healthcare professionals, and community leaders. The foundation is dedicated to achieving and maintaining full immunization to protect Floridians from vaccine-preventable diseases.

Mayfield criticized the proposal.

鈥淢y daughter Lawson went from being a healthy, vibrant 18-year-old to fighting for her life in a matter of hours. We lost her within 36 hours. That is why I am deeply troubled by a proposal that would expand exemptions beyond religion to include broad moral or ethical beliefs,鈥� she said in a prepared statement.

鈥淔or families like mine, that is not an abstract policy change. It means more children could be left unprotected from diseases we know how to prevent. We should be making it easier to protect children, not easier to opt out of those protections.鈥�

The administrative process

DeSantis leaves office in about five months, which is not a long time when it comes to the rulemaking process.

Last year, when the administration announced it wanted to eliminate vaccine mandates, it published notice of what it called 鈥渞ule development,鈥� the first step in the rulemaking process.

During rule development, the public can request a public workshop, an opportunities to provide insights on a proposal. 

There were requests for public hearings and DOH complied by  

The agency didn鈥檛 continue down the rulemaking path following the meeting, however, instead lobbying the Legislature to change the policy via statute, thereby negating the need for administrative changes.

But the Legislature didn鈥檛 pass the governor鈥檚 proposal during the 2026 regular session or any subsequent special sessions.

Without the help of the Legislature, the DeSantis administration was forced to go back through the rulemaking process. Now it鈥檚 doing that.

But it didn鈥檛 begin the process with the traditional first step, notice of rulemaking development. This time, the administration released notice of a proposed rule change, typically the second step in the process.

Following publication of a proposed new regulation, the public has 21 days to request a public hearing.

Hearings, according to Jacksonville healthcare attorney and lobbyist Christopher Nuland, are more formal than workshops. Hearings give the public the opportunity to comment on specifics of a proposal and what they like or don鈥檛 like about it.

If following the hearing the agency makes no changes to the proposed regulation, the public has 21 days to file a challenge in the state Division of Administrative Hearings. 

During such a dispute, the rule wouldn鈥檛 go into effect.

And these challenges can take months to resolve.

Still, Nuland said, that could change if the governor pushes hard enough.

鈥淲hat鈥檚 going to be interesting is, does DeSantis make this his going-away shot and push this to get this in before he leaves office,鈥� he said.

This story was originally published by , a part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.

Remember when Labor Day was the unofficial end of summer and schools started up again after that?

Your kids probably don鈥檛 either.

The 2026-27 school year started Wednesday in Frederick County, and the remaining 23 school systems will all be back in class within less than two weeks 鈥� almost a full week before they go on break for Labor Day weekend.

The last time Maryland schools started after Labor Day was a brief window in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 school years 鈥� when today鈥檚 high school seniors were entering third grade 鈥� when an executive order by Gov. Larry Hogan ordering the delay was in effect. Lawmakers reversed it in 2018, but Hogan vetoed it, buying his policy another year before his veto was overridden.

Here鈥檚 the  of starting dates for the rest of the state, including seven that start Monday: Anne Arundel, Baltimore City, Charles, Dorchester, Howard, Queen Anne鈥檚 and Talbot.

When students do return, they will be starting a school year in which they鈥檒l face new 鈥� and shorter 鈥� comprehensive tests, a renewed emphasis on school attendance and new help for students struggling in math.

School systems also start the year with nearly $15 million in grants announced Wednesday by Gov. Wes Moore (D) to decrease the state鈥檚 teacher shortage, under the state鈥檚 Grow Your Own initiative. This latest round of funding is expected to support 845 educators throughout the state. One of the largest awards is the $3.1 million going to Frederick County.

These grants are the second round of funding under the program, which will focus on high鈥憂eed areas such as special education and early childhood. After the first round of $19 million was announced in , teacher vacancies were sliced nearly in half from slightly more than 1,600 to about 886 last year.

The goal of the initiative is expanding teacher and staff pipelines, boosting diversity in the profession and establishing apprenticeships.

鈥淭he Grow Your Own Educators Grant addresses the teacher vacancy gap and ensures our students receive the world class education they deserve by building pathways to work, wages and wealth for the professionals already dedicated to their service,鈥� Moore said in a statement.

Some of the other school districts to receive grants are Anne Arundel County at $3.6 million, St. Mary鈥檚 County at $3.0 million, Charles and Howard counties at $1.5 million each. Seven Eastern Shore districts will receive approximately $1.1 million, and Worcester County will get $829,234, according to the governor鈥檚 office.

Although  isn鈥檛 part of the shore鈥檚 consortium, it has a Grow Your Own teacher program.

The new tests students will face this year will come as the state transitions into the newly designed Maryland System of Testing Academic Readiness (MSTAR) that鈥檚 slated to begin in the spring 2027.

It will mark the end of the聽聽tests for students in third through eighth grades. When they took the MCAP tests this spring, nearly 52% were proficient in English Language Arts and about 27% of students were proficient in math. Both were gains of less than a percentage point from the previous year鈥檚 test.

State Superintedent Carey Wright said last month one change with the new test is that it will specifically measure each grade level by what鈥檚 being taught in the classrooms. In the current language arts test, for example, students receive a litany of questions that may be on different levels. One main difference, she said, is that the new tests will be shorter.

During a virtual news conference Tuesday, Wright said the state has launched an attendance awareness campaign called 鈥�.鈥� Part of its purpose is to improve school attendance from the 31% of students who were chronically absent in 2022. Currently that rate is about 22%.

鈥淭hat says a lot about the work that our that our schools are doing,鈥� Wright said.

Also starting this upcoming school year, school districts must develop a process 鈥渢o identify and support students who exhibit difficulties with learning鈥� math that would include students with disabilities.

State school board President Joshua Michael, who has children in the Baltimore City鈥檚 public schools, offered some parental advice such as asking a teacher or a school leader about a child鈥檚 social environment, especially in prekindergarten and middle school.

鈥淲ho are the adults that they are excited to see every day? Who are the young people that they鈥檙e building relationships with?鈥� Michael said during the news conference with Wright. 鈥淛ust learning and attending to the people they鈥檙e building relationships with is going to go a long way in their socio-emotional development.鈥�

This story was originally published by Maryland Matters.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: info@marylandmatters.org.

To improve school attendance in a state with one of the nation鈥檚 highest absenteeism rates, Oregon education officials on Tuesday presented lawmakers with a plan to repeal existing attendance laws.

The high-level presentation and 20-page presented to the Senate Interim Education Committee described a strategy to replace existing attendance laws 鈥渞ooted in compliance鈥� with new rules that measure 鈥渁ttendance as a performance growth indicator.鈥� It left lawmakers with many more questions than answers: State Sen. Courtney Neron Misslin, D-Wilsonville, almost immediately requested a follow-up meeting to get more clarity.

passed during the 2025 legislative session required the Oregon Department of Education to produce by May 31 a report that outlined how districts are handling attendance policies, best practices for recording and improving student attendance and statutory recommendations that could apply in Oregon. Lawmakers will take up any recommendations during the next legislative session in 2027.

Oregon schools have among the highest absenteeism rates in the country, state data , and it鈥檚 a problem that has persisted since students returned to school following the COVID pandemic nearly five years ago.

Roughly one-third of Oregon students in 2024 were considered chronically absent, meaning they missed 17 or more school days during the school year in a state with one of the shortest school years in the country. About one-fifth of students nationwide were chronically absent in 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

Repeal and replace

Among the recommendations state education officials offered are to repeal relating to compulsory school attendance and to replace them with statutes that 鈥渨ould include compulsory attendance requirements and exemptions,鈥� and also outline the responsibilities of guardians and school districts when it comes to student attendance. The report described some state attendance laws as 鈥渙utdated鈥� and 鈥渄uplicitive,鈥� and said some homeschooling regulations are wrapped into attendance laws.

The State Board of Education would be tasked with coming up with the new statutes, and attendance would be wrapped into new legislatively mandated measures.

鈥淥regon鈥檚 current compulsory attendance statutes and rules are grounded in compliance-oriented definitions of attendance, static thresholds, and enforcement mechanisms. Maintaining compulsory attendance statutes rooted in compliance creates tension with this model, as they rely on fixed definitions of absence and enforcement responses that create conflict with attendance as a growth-based measurement,鈥� the report reads.

Notably absent is any recommendation for punitive action or a framework for accountability from students or their families when a student continues to miss school. Lawmakers in 2021 repealed an Oregon law that allowed schools to issue truancy fines to parents or guardians for a child鈥檚 ongoing and unexcused absences from school.

鈥淭his represents a shift from enforcing attendance through prescribed sanctions to using attendance data as a continuous signal for improvement, support, and system effectiveness,鈥� the education department recommendations read.

Candice Castillo, deputy director of academics at the state education department, told lawmakers that some students who continually violate district attendance policies will unenroll from school or just stop showing up, disappearing altogether.

鈥淭here鈥檚 all these barriers and these challenges that our students and communities are facing, and compulsory policies can be helpful to some extent, but there is a broader system that needs to be in place in order to really support students,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hat we aim to do with this recommendation beyond that compulsory requirement is really to help the district build a system and build an approach that allows us to support the student needs, so that our students would want to be in the classroom consistently.鈥�

State Sen. Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro, asked Castillo 鈥渨hat the teeth鈥� of the proposal would be.

鈥淚 think you can have that level of the 鈥榳rap around supports鈥� 鈥� What supports does this student need? What supports does this family need? 鈥� but we also can hold students accountable,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 sometimes worry Oregon gets in its own way when we remove the accountability.鈥�

Other attendance policy recommendations

Education officials told lawmakers that there are major inconsistencies in how districts record student attendance, as well as how they record the reasons why a student is absent, making it difficult to collect accurate data on why so many students in Oregon are not going to school regularly.

The education department would create 17 possible codes districts could use to record students not as merely 鈥渆xcused鈥� or 鈥渦nexcused鈥� but as 鈥減resent鈥� or 鈥渁bsent.鈥�

Under the new codes, a student could be marked 鈥減resent鈥� even if they are out of school for a debate tournament or sport, are temporarily getting remote instruction or are attending a tribal education program or event. A student would be marked 鈥渁bsent鈥� if they are ill, working, can鈥檛 find transportation to school or if their situation is unknown.

In their presentation, state education officials noted that merely recording a student as 鈥渆xcused鈥� or 鈥渦nexcused鈥� lacks clarifying information and 鈥減laces a value statement on absences and contributes to a misconception about absences,鈥� while recording students as 鈥減resent鈥� or 鈥渁bsent鈥� provides more context and 鈥渃enters the loss of instruction for any reason and elevates root causes for appropriate interventions.鈥�

Education officials also recommended studying and revisiting Oregon鈥檚 10-day rule, under which students are automatically unenrolled if they miss 10 consecutive days without an excuse. The rule鈥檚 intended to ensure districts are not double-counting students who may have moved between districts, but it can create barriers for students who eventually return to a school after a prolonged absence and require a school to resubmit enrollment information to get the student鈥檚 per-pupil funding restored.

They also recommended the state provide more money for the agency鈥檚 Every Day Matters program, which currently has just two full time employees, and to fund a statewide information and data collection system so the education department can more easily collect attendance information from schools and provide technical help.

The agenda for the three-hour meeting included more updates from education officials on the legislatively mandated accountability metrics and the rollout of Gov. Tina Kotek鈥檚 recent stopping school districts from cutting instructional time to save money.

鈥淗ow does low instructional time and days contribute to a culture of non-attendance?鈥� Sollman asked Castillo.

Castillo acknowledged Oregon鈥檚 short school year, and research showing school attendance is one of the single most important indicators of student success.

鈥淲hile there鈥檚 always benefits for our students to have longer instructional time, we also know that, as we referenced earlier, it has to be a cohesive and holistic approach and system,鈥� she said. 鈥淗aving additional instructional time will be important, but we鈥檙e also creating the right conditions for our students.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Shumway for questions: info@oregoncapitalchronicle.com.

This scenario played out in 15,700 elementary schools across the nation in the 2022-23 school year, our of the latest federal data shows, up from 3,550 elementary schools before the pandemic. 

The impact from so many students missing so much school has made learning more challenging not just for the students who are chronically absent (missing 10% of the school year) but also for those who . These very high levels of chronic absence are also causing teachers to feel less satisfied with .

The disappointing results of the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) underscore that high levels of absenteeism continue to contribute to the decline in student performance. In fact, an analysis of past NAEP results show that students who missed more school scored far lower than their peers. Keep in mind that this year鈥檚 4th grade NAEP scores are for students who were in kindergarten when the pandemic hit, causing huge disruptions to acquiring the fundamental habits and academic skills needed to lay a strong foundation for school success.

When chronic absence is pervasive, it has a profound impact on the learning experience of all students. When teachers are constantly having to reteach kids that have been absent, that limits their ability to continue making progress with the kids that are there every day. 

Recent studies show that when chronic absence reaches high levels, it has spillover effects dragging down the math and reading scores of even those classmates who aren鈥檛 missing too much school. It can also that regularly attending peers will become chronically absent.

The U.S. Education Department data for the 2022鈥�23 school year shows that 61% of schools had chronic absenteeism rate of at least 20% 鈥� the level at which it affects all students, not just those who are chronically absent. That鈥檚 down from the previous year鈥檚 65% levels but still more than twice the 28% of schools with these levels in 2017-18. This meant that for the average-sized school in 2022-23 that reached the 20% mark, there were at least 88 chronically absent students in each elementary school, 113 in each middle school and 139 students in each high school.聽

The federal data also reflect that 30% or more of students are chronically absent at 36% of all schools, compared to 43% in 2021-22 and 14 percent 2017-18. This kind of absenteeism can overwhelm a school and certainly is too much for just one attendance monitor, social worker, or counselor to address. 

Overall, the federal data found that the share of students who were chronically absent slightly decreased from its high of 30% of students in the 2021-22 school year to 28% in 2022-23. for 2023-24 shows some improvement but still not a return to pre-pandemic levels.

The improvements reflected in the federal data were uneven 鈥� some places didn’t improve and some places even found it getting worse 鈥� but overall there were small improvements. This means that chronic absence remained highly elevated during the second year of in-person schooling for students, even though during the 2022-23 school year, attendance was not affected by widespread Covid-19 outbreaks.

While chronic absence was decreasing for all student groups, sizable gaps remained. We see that historically marginalized groups 鈥� Native American, Pacific Islander, Black and Hispanic students, students with disabilities and English language learners 鈥� continued to experience much higher absenteeism. At the same time, there were encouraging attendance improvements for Black and Hispanic students overall. 

The years following the pandemic have, for many families, resulted in a shift in s around education. High levels of schoolwide absenteeism can exacerbate the mindset that showing up to school in person is optional. It harms teachers’ perceptions as well. Research shows that significant chronic absence leads teachers to view students who are missing 18 days more negatively, and also leads teachers to feel worse about their jobs. 

Given the persistence of chronic absence, we can all agree that focusing on student engagement and attendance must be a top priority for every state, district, school and community. States and districts must set ambitious but achievable goals like reducing chronic absence  and implementing a systematic road map for change. 

It’s true that in many cases elevated levels of chronic absence will not be eliminated overnight. The good news is that we have seen substantially improved student engagement and attendance in states including , , ,  and  as well as in many districts across the nation. 

How did these improvements happen? Each involves an investment in a comprehensive, data-informed, prevention-oriented, all-hands-on-deck approach to improve engagement and attendance.

After decades of plunging enrollment, Kansas City Public Schools is setting a new trend. The number of students is ticking upward.

For the third year in a row, the district鈥檚 enrollment count in late September ran higher than the previous year. Preliminary figures show KCPS added 570 K-12 students since the official count day last year, about a 4% increase.

That leaves it with more than 14,000 students for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic helped bring enrollment to a low point. Including pre-kindergarten students, it has more than 15,000.

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With growth come changes in whom the district serves.

Black students, who made up about 58% of the district during the 2024-15 school year, dipped below the majority this year to about 46% of pre-K-to-12 enrollment. Hispanic students represent an increasing share of the district, more than a third this year.

Much of the recent growth has been fueled by families moving into schools that feed into Northeast High School and students who need help learning English.

But growth doesn鈥檛 necessarily pause even after students are counted, and the year is in full swing. During the last school year, KCPS between early September 鈥� before the count day 鈥� and mid-April.

That鈥檚 happening again, said Deputy Superintendent Derald Davis. 鈥淲e continue to enroll new students each and every day.鈥�

Where enrollment growth is happening

Northeast area schools have led the way in increased enrollment, adding hundreds of students both this year and last year.

This year, East High School feeder schools also added 150 students, and the Central High School region added almost 90. Only the Southeast High School area lost students.

Many of those new students are still learning English. The 430 additional English language learners compared to last year account for about two-thirds of the total pre-K-to-12 enrollment growth.

Overall, make up nearly a quarter of the district. The biggest group of them were born in the U.S., Davis said.

鈥淭hey may have families that originated from elsewhere,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f English is not spoken in the home, we still could have many students who arrive at kindergarten with limited English proficiency.鈥�

Hundreds of other students come from Honduras, Mexico and Tanzania.

The growth comes as KCPS prepares to finalize a building plan meant to improve learning and address deferred maintenance issues in a district built for a higher number of students.

A involves opening, closing and moving schools to different buildings. It isn鈥檛 as focused on paring down the number of schools as the plan the district unveiled in 2022.

Enrollment growth makes it easier to justify keeping buildings open and helps bring in the state tax dollars needed to maintain them. But the plan hinges on voter approval of a bond in April 2025.

A district strategic plan calls for KCPS to enroll at least 15,000 K-12 students by 2025, a goal it could hit with about 5.5% enrollment growth over the next year. By 2030, KCPS wants to have 17,000 students.

This first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

The analysis, from and the at Johns Hopkins University, looked at that found more than 14 million chronically absent students during the 2021-22 academic year 鈥� an increase of nearly seven million students compared to 2017-18.

Robert Balfanz, director of the Everyone Graduates Center, said an 鈥渁ll hands on deck鈥� approach is needed to address widespread absenteeism in the aftermath of the pandemic.

鈥淚f you can imagine a rising tide, students who were a little underwater are now underwater more and those that weren鈥檛 underwater before now are,鈥� Balfanz told 社区黑料.

This analysis served as a second look into the attendance trend which previously showed how across the country were enrolled in schools with high or extreme chronic absenteeism 鈥� more than twice the rate compared to the 2017-18 academic year.

Students are considered chronically absent if they miss at least , or roughly 18 days.

Although the attendance trend affected students of all ethnic backgrounds, Latino students took the brunt of the declines 鈥� increasing from nearly 2.4 million in 2017-18 to five million in 2021-22, a 53 percent jump.

Pacific Islander students saw the second biggest jump of 46 percent, white students by 39 percent, Black students by 36 percent and Native American students by 29 percent.

Balfanz said pandemic-era challenges for low-income and immigrant families pulled students away from school and contributed to the widening attendance gaps.

鈥淢any kids got jobs because their parents lost theirs and became a lot more restricted,鈥� Balfanz said, adding how Latino students often faced this burden compared to other ethnic groups.

He added how 鈥渃aregiving鈥� also played a major factor in declining Latino student attendance 鈥� often coming from multigenerational families with stronger cultural expectations to look after younger siblings.

The attendance trend was also observed geographically, particularly impacting students in both suburban and rural areas.

Chronic absenteeism in suburban and rural school districts jumped to 5.1 million and 2.5 million students respectively in 2021-22 鈥� a 46 percent and 47 percent increase compared to 2.8 million and 1.4 million in 2017-18.

Schools in cities experienced an increase of 44 percent and districts in towns jumped by 42 percent.

Hedy Chang, founder and executive director of Attendance Works, said 鈥渋nequitable access to needed [healthcare] services and poor transportation鈥� during the pandemic contributed to the attendance gaps in rural areas.

The greatest increases in chronic absenteeism occurred among schools serving larger numbers of students living in poverty, the analysis found.

Among schools with 75 percent or more students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, chronic absence nearly tripled 鈥� from 25 percent to 69 percent. 

Chang said poverty was the driving force behind student chronic absenteeism nationwide.

鈥淜ids who are living in poverty are much more likely to have all of these barriers when it comes to aversion and disengagement,鈥� Chang told 社区黑料.

鈥淚t鈥檚 hard for students to keep going when they feel like nobody knows them or nobody cares,鈥� Balfanz added. 鈥淪olving that disconnect they have is a great first step.鈥�

The Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the convictions of two single mothers who were charged with violating the state鈥檚 compulsory attendance law after their children missed school without a documented illness.

focused on what 鈥渞egular attendance鈥� means and whether the state law was too vague.

Ellen Flottman, a public defender representing the mothers, argued the law is inconsistently applied. The children鈥檚 school district, Lebanon R-III School District, required students to attend school at least 90% of the time, but defendants didn鈥檛 know if this percentage included excused absences.

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鈥淢y clients were not acting knowingly鈥�. They鈥檙e being misled by the school handbook and the school administrators,鈥� Flottman said in May.

Assistant Attorney General Shaun Mackelprang, who represented the state, told the Supreme Court that the definition of 鈥渁 regular basis鈥� means attending school every day school is in session.

According to the filing, one student missed nine days of school without an excuse called into the school鈥檚 office, and the other defendant鈥檚 child was absent seven days without an excuse.

Missouri Supreme Court Judge Robin Ransom wrote, with five in concurrence, that these unexcused absences violated state law.

She wrote that there are two reasons children can be absent from class: If a parent removes them from the school鈥檚 rolls or if they are 鈥渕entally or physically incapacitated to the satisfaction of school officials.鈥�

Ransom wrote that, because state law doesn鈥檛 mandate 90% attendance, the discussion of the district鈥檚 policy is 鈥渙f little relevance.鈥�

The district鈥檚 actions did, though, inform the parents that they were breaking the law, the ruling says.

鈥淣either (defendant) was provided information by the school to suggest there would be no consequences for each child鈥檚 failure to attend,鈥� Ransom wrote. 鈥淩ather, school officials consistently communicated that regular attendance was required.鈥�

The ruling affirms both state law and the decisions of the lower courts to convict the parents.

Because of Laclede County Circuit Court鈥檚 ruling, one mother spent seven days in jail, and the other received two years of probation.

is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on and .

The Missouri Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday over whether two single mothers should have been sentenced to jail time because their children missed more days of school than the local district allowed.

The case centers on , which states that a parent must ensure their child attends 鈥渢he academic program on a regular basis.鈥�

Assistant Attorney General Shaun Mackelprang, representing the state, argued that the definition of 鈥渁 regular basis鈥� means attending school every day on the district鈥檚 schedule.

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鈥淒o I have to go to school everyday? The answer is yes,鈥� he told six Supreme Court judges Wednesday morning. 鈥淵ou have to go to school every day that the school is in session.鈥�

Ellen Flottman, a public defender representing Caitlyn Williams and Tamarae LaRue, argued the law is unconstitutionally vague and inconsistently applied.

鈥淭he state鈥檚 position is anti-parent. Most of the school districts are not prosecuting these parents,鈥� Flottman said Wednesday. 鈥淪chools have to work with parents; they have to have policies because they want the kids to go to school.鈥�

鈥淏ut this is a kindergartener and a first grader. Is missing one day in November and one day in December going to hurt this kindergartener鈥檚 education that much?鈥�

Case Background

Williams and LaRue鈥檚 children attended school in the Lebanon R-III School District, about an hour outside of Springfield.

The district has a 16.1% poverty rate, , compared to Missouri鈥檚 12.7% poverty rate.

During the 2021-2022 school year, Williams鈥� six-year-old daughter missed 16 days of school before the district filed a probable cause statement. A Laclede County Circuit Court judge sentenced Williams to seven days in jail and added a misdemeanor to her record.

Williams called her daughter out from school sick for six of the absences, but the school counts these as 鈥渧erified鈥� but not 鈥渆xcused鈥� and tallies the hours and minutes of missed instructional time toward her percentage.

The district鈥檚 handbook, which parents check a box that they have read when they register online, says parents must notify the school of absences but it does not clarify the difference between 鈥渧erified鈥� and 鈥渆xcused鈥� absences, such as those with a doctor鈥檚 note.

鈥淢y clients were not acting knowingly鈥�. They鈥檙e being misled by the school handbook and the school administrators,鈥� Flottman said Wednesday.

The handbook also says: 鈥淭he state mandates that students maintain 90% or higher attendance each year in school and that continued and valuable learning cannot take place without regular attendance.鈥�

State statute does not mandate a 90% attendance rate, though students who maintain this level of attendance contribute greater to school accreditation, Mackelprang said Wednesday.

Mackelprang argued in a filing in the case that high attendance contributes toward a school鈥檚 funding.

鈥淒aily attendance, even down to the hour, has important consequences for schools and, by extension, all of the students at a given school,鈥� Mackelprang wrote.

LaRue鈥檚 six-year-old son was absent 13 days, according to Flottman, and LaRue called the school with explanation for six of those absences. The district says his attendance, based on the number of hours present, is just under 80%.

Court documents say LaRue gave the following reasons for her son鈥檚 absence: Doctor appointment, fever, at dad鈥檚 in Iowa, another appointment, overslept and sick. Documents mention siblings and that the family contracted COVID-19 during the school year.

LaRue was sentenced to 15 days in jail by a different Laclede County Circuit Court judge than Williams, but the sentence was changed to two years of probation.

Arguments

Flottman鈥檚 argument was three-pronged: The parents didn鈥檛 know that they were violating the rules because the handbook didn鈥檛 state that absences without doctor鈥檚 notes are unexcused; the circuit court failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the children鈥檚 absences were beyond regular attendance; and the state statute is 鈥渦nconstitutionally vague鈥� by failing to define what 鈥渞egular鈥� attendance means.

She opened the arguments by saying she attends church 鈥渙n a regular basis,鈥� although she missed a service recently and has a vacation planned.

鈥淭he state has argued that regular means every day,鈥� she said as Judge W. Brent Powell interrupted her.

Powell said he liked her church analogy but asked if the nonattendance rules were like the speed limit, where not everyone that gets caught breaking the law gets a ticket but officers have discretion on what is too far.

Flottman responded by using an example introduced in Mackelprang鈥檚 brief, the Wisconsin compulsory school attendance law which says children should attend school 鈥渞egularly.鈥� The Wisconsin Court of Appeals defined 鈥渞egularly鈥� as 鈥渃onstantly and uniformly,鈥� Mackelprang wrote.

Flottman said the state鈥檚 argument also helped her clients, for Wisconsin鈥檚 law has a 鈥渟pecific schema,鈥� she said Wednesday.

鈥淢issouri doesn鈥檛 give that kind of guidance to parents,鈥� she said.

Judge Mary R. Russell inquired Mackelprang about why Missouri lawmakers didn鈥檛 include more specificity in the attendance law.

鈥淲hy would the legislature choose to write it this way instead of in a way that is more articulate?鈥� she asked.

鈥淭hey just have to write it in a way that is adequate,鈥� Mackelprang said.

鈥淪o, is the legislature leaving it up to local school districts how to enforce this word?鈥� Russell asked, inquiring about the definition of 鈥渞egular attendance.鈥� 鈥淗ow to interpret this word?鈥�

鈥淭here probably is some discretion of when they are going to go to the prosecutor with it,鈥� Mackelprang said.

Flottman said she was worried about this leniency allowing schools to apply different standards to students.

鈥淭he students that take a day off to go deer hunting or their parents who take their children out of school for a week to go to Disney World are not being prosecuted for this. So there鈥檚 a difference between prosecutorial discretion and arbitrary enforcement,鈥� she said.

Judge Robin Ransom asked if she would make the same argument if it were not a criminal case.

鈥淚 do think the criminalization of this certainly has to do with it. We鈥檙e talking about the liberty of people who are just trying to do the best they can,鈥� Flottman said.

She said she would argue that the state should get involved to provide services to get the children to school.

Mackelprang said the statute is not 鈥渁nti-parent.鈥� He said parents are in control of young children and have options to homeschool or enroll them in private school.

鈥淲omen make the decision to enroll them in a public school, like the parents did in this case,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e subject to the terms of this statute.鈥�

The judges can鈥檛 base their decision on violations of the school handbook, for the state鈥檚 case is that Williams and LaRue broke state law.

is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com. Follow Missouri Independent on and .

Over the past few years, the pandemic prompted school closures and remote learning that drew to issues of students missing school 鈥� what researchers call 鈥渘on-attendance.鈥�

Millions of students across the world missing varying amounts of school raises concerns about students鈥� learning loss and mental health 鈥� and also about long-term implications, particularly for those for poor educational outcomes.

But school non-attendance is not a new issue. problems in many countries such as Canada, the United States and Australia for a long time. There have always been students who missed school.

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School attendance problems are complex and often very challenging to address. And for responses to be effective in getting students to school more often, they .

Not a Hollywood picture

Popular culture is filled with examples of teenagers skipping classes 鈥� like , this is framed by humor and a gleeful sense of freedom. But Ferris Bueller went back to school the next day without any major impact on his life. This isn鈥檛 the case for many.

Evidence shows worse outcomes for students who miss a lot of school, including lower , lower graduation rates, higher rates of , mental and and lower employment.

And certain life circumstances, such as poverty, of chronic school attendance issues.

Chronic school attendance problems are usually missing more than 10% of school days.

School attendance in countries like Canada and Australia until between 16 and 18 years of age, depending on the province or territory.

There are legal penalties for families whose children are chronically absent from school as well as for students themselves, and possible involvement of child protection services.

Many reasons students are absent, disengaged

There are why students miss school.

Some because they are disengaged, others because of significant anxiety or mental health and well-being concerns.

Some are absent because of frequent experiences of harassment, bullying and .

Others miss school because they have family responsibilities such as younger siblings, or because of . Students may experience problems, and these may vary over time.

students face, from family responsibilities to barriers related to racism or inadequate support for disabilities.

Complex, flexible approaches needed

There has been more in recent years of the recognition of the complex, multilayered and flexible approaches necessary to improve school attendance. There have also been efforts to think about school attendance as more than just 鈥減resent鈥� or 鈥渁bsent.鈥� Are students participating? Are they included? Are they engaged? Are they learning?

Many initiatives are still based on simplistic ideas of school attendance and punitive approaches that really .

These fail to address the issues experienced by students that create the attendance problem in the first place. And these approaches often further most at risk of school attendance problems.

There are four key points or 鈥淎BCDs鈥� for schools, families and communities to consider:

1. Academics and well-being

Well-being supports, including and addictions services, lunch programs, identity-based clubs, and opportunities for movement and physical activity are all important in promoting school attendance.

But if a child can鈥檛 read, or an adolescent is struggling to learn algebraic equations and falling behind their peers, well-being initiatives aren鈥檛 enough. An to support academic success and well-being for students is essential.

2. Building relationships

A sense of belonging and connectedness is critical to engagement, learning and attendance for students. Students need to feel like they matter to someone at school 鈥� someone who notices when they鈥檙e not there but who also welcomes them when they are.

Relationships need to be purposefully fostered between and among students, staff, families and communities. , peer buddies, leadership opportunities, community experiential projects or are some examples of ways to support relationship building.

3. Climate of school

A supportive and positive is key for students, staff, families and communities. Schools can provide opportunities for shared decision-making, autonomy, support and valuing of student and family identities and strengths.

Extra-curriculars and high expectations need to be in place alongside supports to meet these. Families can be welcomed in a range of ways that reflect the needs of communities. and harassment, including anti-racist, homophobic and anti-Indigenous abuse, needs to be addressed.

4. Data needed

Data is important for understanding attendance 鈥� who is at school, who is not. And if not, what are the reasons? In shifting responses to attendance, schools can consider also shifting the ways they collect, use and report on data. For example, an to identify student attendance patterns can help to proactively support students and families before chronic issues arise.

Considering traditional attendance counts alongside school climate data, student records, academic profiles and student well-being indicators can tell a fuller story, and lead to more effective ways of getting students to school 鈥� and keeping them there.

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