Let's Talk New Mexico, 5/8, 8a: Nationwide schools are facing chronic absenteeism, and it’s even worse in New Mexico which saw the largest increase - of 119% -in the country from 2019 to 2023. That means over 124,000 students in the state were chronically absent.
Students who are chronically absent are those who are missing 10% or more days of school for any reason, excused or unexcused. After reviewing school surveys the Legislative Education Study Committee found that the main reasons students were not in school were illness, parent decisions, and a lack of engagement.
These numbers have led to negative impacts with long-term consequences like low academic proficiency and declining graduation rates.
There are some initiatives by both the New Mexico Public Education Department and local school districts to address this, but inconsistent attendance practices could be leading to an undercounting of absences. Also, the state’s Attendance for Success Act was enacted in 2019 requiring school districts to track and report chronic absenteeism, but also created a tiered intervention system that didn’t rely on the courts to handle the issue. However, there has been no specific guidance from the state in implementing these interventions, leaving many school districts on their own.
On the next Let’s Talk New Mexico, we’ll discuss why more students are missing from the classroom and what it would take to change that. And we want to hear from you! Are you an educator? What are the obstacles you think are keeping kids out of school? Email letstalk@kunm.org, leave a voice message below, or call in live Thursday morning at 8.
