Students who miss at least 10 percent of days in a school year are considered to be chronically absent by the Department of Education. Chronic absenteeism peaked during the COVID-19 pandemic, but remains prevalent throughout the state of New York, according to a new report from the Office of the New York State Comptroller.
During the 2022-2023 academic year, 34.1 percent of high school students in the state of New York were chronically absent. However, the rate of chronic absenteeism varied for students of different races. Black students (46.4 percent) and Hispanic students (43.7 percent) had significantly higher rates of chronic absenteeism than White students (24.7 percent) and Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander students (21.3 percent).
In New York City specifically, nearly half of all Black and Hispanic high school students were chronically absent during the 2022-2023 school year. In comparison, 35 percent of White students and 23 percent of Asian students in New York City high schools were chronically absent. Across all large cities in the state, the rate of chronic absenteeism for Black and Hispanic high school students was over 67 percent. White and Asian high school students in all large New York cities also experienced higher rates of chronic absenteeism, but at significantly lower rates than their Black and Hispanic peers.
According to the report authors, “the state needs to continue to track chronic absenteeism on a school, district, and state level, and report the data publicly as it currently does, to allow parents, policy makers, and concerned members of the public to understand the issue and track the state’s and district’s progress towards reducing absenteeism. It is important that the state continue to be transparent about one of the key factors impacting its ability to overcome pandemic-era learning losses.”
