Georgia study committee is briefed on rising chronic absenteeism, possible fixes including nurses, social workers and early-warning systems

A Georgia House study committee convened to examine student attendance heard on Monday that chronic absenteeism in the state rose sharply after the COVID-19 pandemic and now affects tens of thousands of students, with early-grade absences particularly acute.

The panel, created under House resolution HR 711 (LC520861S), was told by Gary McGivony, chair of a student-attendance subcommittee of the Georgia Reading Cabinet, that statewide chronic absenteeism reached 21.3 percent in the 2023–24 school year and that roughly 20 percent of students miss three weeks or more of school in a year. McGivony said the subcommittee’s six-month review linked absences to lasting learning loss and recommended multiple prevention and intervention strategies.

Why it matters: presenters said the academic consequences are measurable and large. McGivony cited an Atlanta Regional Commission model estimating that a 5 percent reduction in absenteeism could raise third-grade English language arts proficiency from 38.4 percent to roughly 45 percent, producing thousands more proficient readers. Justin Hill of the Georgia Department of Education highlighted a public dashboard intended to help districts and schools identify problem areas quickly and track subgroups such as students with disabilities and economically disadvantaged students.

Key…