TUCSON, ARIZ. (KGUN) — In Arizona, chronic absence is deemed as missing 10% or more of the school year. That means missing 18 days in a typical 180-day school year, assuming the student does not change schools.
In the 2022-23 school year, absence rates nearly doubled from pre-pandemic years, as shown in this graph from research by Helios Education Foundation.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne is calling for ‘radical efforts’ to be made to combat this issue.
In a press release, Horne stated in part:
"We have to create a motivation for parents to be sure their children go to school. Parents don’t want their kids to fail courses or to miss out on graduating on time, and if schools would adopt those kinds of polices, we would see the parents motivated and a radical drop in absenteeism."
“We need them to be in school to be able to teach them to then get academic results," said Teresa Hill. She has been in the education industry for nearly 30 years. She was Assistant Principal and in charge of attendance at Flowing Wells and is now part of the organization Tucson Values Teachers.
“If they feel connected, there’s a better chance that they’re going to want to come to school," Hill explained.
Policies regarding absences are set at the local district and charter level. Tucson Unified School District has Regulation Code: JE-R, which outlines their attendance policy.
I reached out to other neighboring school districts, and most responded back outlining a policy that after nine unexcused absences, students risk failing a course.
Hill explains that most schools want to see their students succeed.
“They are trying to get kids to come to school," she said. "They are trying to find the problems. But, what resources do they need?”
Hill believes truancy officers can make a huge difference.
“Having that backup from law enforcement to say by law, you need to send your kid to school and that makes the parents have to figure out how to solve their problems without holding the kid back from being able to attend," Hill explained.
Not every student wants to skip class, Hill explains. She says every situation is different for every student, so it's important to find the root of the problem for every consistently absent student.
Finding responsible ways to punish students for skipping class is also crucial to Hill.
“You have to be very careful because you don’t want to create more absences from a kid who’s already absent," she said. "You know, suspending kids because they’re not coming to school just creates more absences.”
For now, Hill explains the most important things are to find the root of the problem, and provide as many resources as possible to schools throughout Arizona.
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Athena Kehoe is a reporter for KGUN 9, she joined the KGUN 9 team in July of 2024 after graduating from Arizona State University. Share your story ideas with Athena by emailing athena.kehoe@kgun9.com or by connecting on X/Twitter.
