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A third of Hoosier high school seniors missed 18 or more days of school last year as Indiana seeks solutions to persistently high rates of absenteeism.
Chronic absenteeism has steadily improved in the state since hitting a high of 21% in 2021-22. The absenteeism rate for the 2022-2023 school year was 19%.
But at around 18% in 2023-24, the rate is still much higher than in 2019-20, when only around 11% of students were chronically absent.
Indiana Department of Education officials presented this year’s attendance data to the State Board of Education Wednesday, along with two new dashboards meant to help determine which students need interventions.
It comes as lawmakers prepare to meet to study the issue of absenteeism and make recommendations for how to improve attendance among older students. A bill passed earlier this year has already mandated that schools meet with the parents of absentee elementary students to address their attendance. Those families whose students don’t improve may face criminal prosecution .