School attendance is down, chronic absenteeism is up, and concern for students’ learning is growing. On March 6, 200 cross-sector experts and practitioners who are taking a holistic view of students’ experiences and outcomes in school gathered at an event hosted by the Crown Family School’s Kersten Institute for Urban Education and the Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative (IWERC) to discuss how to address the troubling trend across the city and state. The event, Present & Thriving: Students' Attendance, Connectedness, and Well-Being, drew heads of school districts, non-profits, city and state agencies, teacher support organizations, and community organizations, including five sitting members of the Chicago Board of Education. Attendees heard from school communities and a diverse group of practice and policy leaders on what they’re seeing, thinking, and doing to help young people attend and thrive in school, and built more cohesive ideas about the collective path forward for student engagement and success.
New research from the UChicago Consortium on School Research and IWERC show the clear connection between students' attendance and learning. Students with lower attendance rates had lower grades and test scores; higher attendance rates meant higher grades and test scores. The research also points to a key opportunity: schools can and do influence students’ attendance. School climate and culture is more connected to attendance today than ever before. A focus on students’ experiences in, engagement with, and connection to school is critical.
“Absenteeism has remained high since the pandemic, and attendance is tightly related to a number of critical student outcomes,” said Paige Ponder, Senior Executive Director of the Kersten Institute. “But we think it’s also important to name that when so many students are missing school at the levels we’re seeing in Chicago, in Illinois, and across the country, they are sending a very clear signal that our systems aren’t working."
The event shed light on what is working. A panel with principals, staff, students, and a parent from Chalmers STEAM Elementary and Hubbard High School discussed what’s driving the atypically-high rates of attendance at the two neighborhood schools. Eighth-grader Jathen put it simply: “We want to learn because teachers are fun and nice. They like to talk to students.” His principal, Dr. Romian Crockett, emphasized how important the small things are, like the principal greeting every student by name as they enter the school each morning. Students then feel seen, respected, and valued.
Principal Angélica Altamirano of Hubbard High School emphasized how important it is for school to feel like another home—for students, and for educators. Hubbard educators shared that they have committed to ensuring that every student has at least one “trusted adult” at school, to share not just challenges and requests for support, but also to celebrate a good grade or share a positive story.
Schools like Chalmers and Hubbard, with strong leaders and positive cultures, can and do make school a place where students and families feel connected, supported, and engaged. A research presentation underscored that the factors most strongly connected with attendance are relationships with peers and teachers; finding value and meaning in classes; a sense of belonging; sense of safety; and teacher-parent relationships.
Dr. Mashana Smith, Associate Director of Trauma Responsive and Healing-Centered Schools, Center for Childhood Resilience, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, summed up one through-line of the day very clearly: “Relationships ARE the intervention.”
Students thrive when they feel connected to the adults in their schools, and when their school partnerships connect them with needed resources, from warm and dry clothes for the walk home to mental health services at early stages of need to a “healing room” at school where they can take a break and be with supportive peers and adults. Human connection and community-wide partnerships matter more than ever for young people today.
Attendees closed the day of reflection and learning by each sharing one next step: educators reconsidered morning greetings at school, community organizations committed to exploring new collaborations, and district leaders recommitted to asking, “Where are our students pushing us to change?”—and listening. As one of its next steps, the Kersten Institute, which aims to transform education by connecting research, practice, and policy to ensure equity and success for every student, will be embarking on a study to understand what data, professional learning, and school conditions most improve students’ connectedness and reduce chronic absenteeism.