Connecticut leaders highlight lower student absenteeism rates at White House summit

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) – Some Connecticut officials took the national stage Wednesday at a White House summit about chronic school absenteeism.

New Haven’s superintendent and Gov. Ned Lamont (D-Conn.) were among the speakers at the event, which focused on the national problem and some local solutions

“What happened 8th grade going into 9th grade was the pandemic and COVID-19, and when I caught it, I stopped going to school,” said 16-year-old Isaiah Figueroa in a video presentation. “My attendance rate in freshman year was 21%.”

That video led off the Summit on Student Absenteeism held at the White House. Chronic absenteeism has been a national crisis since the pandemic. A couple of years ago, urban districts in Connecticut saw more than 40% of students missing too much school. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona drew on his experience in Meriden.

“As a 4th-grade teacher and a school principal, I saw firsthand the way chronic absence held students back,” Cardona said.

He found outside circumstances can keep even the smartest students from getting an education.

“They’ll tell you that their parents needed them to translate at a medical appointment,” Cardona said. “They’ll tell you that they’re dealing with housing insecurity or food insecurity, or they couldn’t get a ride to school.”

The President’s Domestic Policy Council presented four main things schools can do: Increase communication with families; Visit families at home to work on solutions; Make school more relevant so kids want to be there and meet basic needs like health care and child care.

“I need these kids. I need them in the game, keeping our economy growing with an opportunity for everybody,” Lamont said via remote video.

Lamont talked about Connecticut’s LEAP initiative with thousands of volunteers knocking on doors.

“Saying we miss Jose, where’s he been?” Lamont said. “We want him back at school. His friends miss him.”

And remember Isaiah? His attendance rate went from 21% to 92%, thanks to outreach efforts in his school.

“Being able to access support when I needed it, whether it’s to manage stress or just take another breather, really honestly helped me,” Figueroa said.

A lot of things keep kids from going to school, so there need to be a lot of solutions to get them back to school.

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