Michigan students miss school at alarming rates, but absenteeism hasn’t been a hot election issue
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Michigan students are missing school at alarming rates, a problem that has received little attention during the gubernatorial campaigns. During the previous school year, about 27% of K-12 students were chronically absent, with rates as high as 60% in Detroit Public Schools Community District and 44% in Alpena Public Schools. This absenteeism rate is significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels and among the highest nationally, according to data from FutureEd, a think tank at Georgetown University.
Chronic absenteeism is linked to lower achievement and graduation rates. It also impacts classmates when teachers spend time bringing students back up to speed. Both Democratic candidate Jocelyn Benson and Republican John James have promised to tackle absenteeism if elected. Benson aims to create a statewide absenteeism strategy and increase starting teacher pay, while James proposes a truancy law modelled after Indiana's.
Education experts say chronic absenteeism has various causes, requiring diverse solutions, but agree that the issue needs more attention.
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