Over 7 million students missed 15 or more days of school in 2015-2016, which translates to 16% of the Student Population-about 1 in 6 students (US Department of Education). This can lead to increased academic risk for students' success. Research shows that attendance is an important factor in student achievement.
Legislative Background: In December 2016, the Ohio General Assembly passed HB 410 to encourage and support a preventative approach to excessive absences and truancy. HB 410's truancy provisions bring Ohio law in compliance with federal law and reduce the number of students referred for formal juvenile court processing for missing school.
HB410 emphasizes early intervention and provides opportunities to:
Eliminate schools from suspending or expelling students with truancy issues and
Limit a youth's exposure to the juvenile justice system due to truant behavior.
Impact: Frequent absences from school can be devastating to a child's future. The effects start early and spiral dramatically over time.
- A student is chronically absent if he/she missed as few as two days of school a month.
- Children who are chronically absent in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade are much less likely to read on grade level by the third grade.
- Students who cannot read at grade level by the third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school.
- By high school, attendance is a better dropout indicator than test scores.
- A chronically absent student, in any year between eighth and twelfth grade, is seven times more likely to drop out of school.