Fewer students are missing school. These state policies may have helped

LA Johnson / NPR

After nearly doubling during the pandemic, the rates of chronic absenteeism in K-12 schools are finally showing steady signs of improvement.

A student is considered chronically absent when they miss at least 10% of a school year. In most states, that means missing about 18 days a year, regardless of whether the absences were excused.

"Thousands of students have returned to schools, which means that states are putting in the work," said Carl Felton, III, a policy analyst at EdTrust, a nonprofit that advocates for underrepresented students.

Felton is the author of a new report that looks at how policies in 22 states plus Washington, D.C., have helped improve student attendance. He said there are several things states are doing right, including collecting and publis