Public schools aim to solve chronic absenteeism
By Anna Alejo
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DENVER, Colorado (KCNC) — Like many districts around the country, Denver Public Schools is dealing with the issue of chronic absenteeism.
It’s not so cut-and-dry as to the reasons why it’s happening. But when it does, it not only sets the student back, but also their classmates and teachers.
That’s why DPS is addressing the issue head-on as a new school year kicks off. The numbers speak for themselves.
DPS estimates that last year, about 33,000 students in the district were chronically absent. That’s one in three DPS students missing more than 10% of the school year.
And the ripple effects are real.
“It impacts their peers’ learning. It impacts the teacher’s ability, because when a student does come back from an absence, then the teacher is trying to catch them up and get them caught up to the rest of the class. It really has a pretty big ripple effect,” said Cori Canty, school improvement and attendance manager at Denver Public Schools.
This is an issue that cuts across income levels — kids miss school for everything from a broken car to a family vacation.
“Making sure vacations are taken during vacation times during the school year, doing the absolute best to schedule doctors and dentist and orthodontist appointments outside of school hours,” Canty said.
A new school year provides the opportunity for a fresh slate when it comes to attendance and emphasizing the importance of being in school.
Canty said, “We want your children at school all day, every day, and what can we do to help you so that it’s very proactive, it’s very positive, and it’s a big, heavy emphasis on problem solving rather than blame and shame.”
The district says that every month, families will know how many days their child has missed school and whether they are considered chronically absent.
They hope this partnership with parents will keep kids in class.
“And even though your child might be okay missing a couple of days, that doesn’t mean the kids around them will also be okay by your child missing a couple of days,” Canty added. “It definitely has a ripple effect.”
DPS has more information about why attendance matters at dpsk12.org/page/attendance.
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