Representatives introduce bill addressing chronic absenteeism bill

Representatives Tim Ryan (D-OH) and Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA) introduced April 3 legislation aimed at reducing chronic absenteeism in schools.

Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10 percent or more of the school year and has been found to negatively impact school performance, high school graduation rates, and overall student success into adulthood, according to a press release from Hererra Beutler.

The Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights and Data Collection found that over 6.8 million students were chronically absent during the 2013-2014 school year, the release said. This makes up 14 percent of the total student population and is especially concerning since students who are chronically absent are 68 percent less likely than other students to graduate high school.

The Chronic Absenteeism Reduction Act would allow schools to tailor solutions based on why individuals or groups of students continue to be absent.

“Empowering students with quality education is so important to their success, and we should identify and eliminate obstacles to achieving that goal,” said Herrera Beutler. “Unfortunately, Washington state has the most public school districts that face chronic absenteeism in the U.S. " I’m pleased to help offer this solution that empowers educators at the local level with tools and support to address factors that are leading to kids in Southwest Washington missing school.”

The proposed act would extend the allowable use of funds of Title IV-A block grants to allow schools the flexibility to invest in getting students to engage in academic programs before having to invest in enriching those programs. This bill would allow schools to enact attendance programs that cater to their local needs by authorizing existing funds for schools to develop and implement effective strategies to combat chronic absence in schools by installing attendance data collection and analysis systems, partnering with local health, transportation and social service providers, and implementing school-based mentoring programs.