Committee hears wide-ranging plan to reduce chronic absenteeism; calls for data sharing and a city‑school work group

Supervisor Norman Yee convened a hearing focused on chronic absenteeism in the San Francisco Unified School District, defining the issue as missing 10 percent or more of school days and emphasizing the long‑term consequences for graduation and achievement. "If 40% of our elementary schools and 67% of our high schools have rates of chronic absenteeism above 11 percent, we need to act now," he said.

National and state experts framed the problem and the solutions. Hetty Chang of Attendance Works described chronic absence as an early warning sign: students missing significant days in preschool and kindergarten are far less likely to read on grade level by third grade. "When kids miss too much school starting in preschool, by second grade they're off track for reading," she said, recommending tiered interventions, positive school climate and actionable data to trigger supports.

Jill Hobig, special counsel to Attorney General Kamala Harris, presented statewide research and a parent‑messaging toolkit the Attorney General's office developed to clarify for families how much missed time matters and to correct misconceptions about early grades. The Attorney General's reports highlight racial and income disparities in early‑grade chronic absence.

SFUSD staff described recent data and district tools. The district reported an overall chronic‑absence rate of 8.1 percent in a recent fall snapshot with higher rates for some subgroups; district staff said they can produce school‑level percentages and counts, and they are developing near‑real‑time reports and an intervention‑tracking system. Tianna Tillery, a district attendance specialist, described a three‑tier approach (universal school climate and incentives; targeted outreach and family engagement; and intensive case management) and pilot programs, including a truancy action partnership (TAP) that convenes courts, schools and service providers.

City agencies and community partners described complementary efforts. DCYF outlined violence‑prevention case management and a Truancy Assessment and Resource Center; First 5 described preschool attendance pilots and electronic sign‑in pilots; the Our Children Our Families (OCOF) Council presented an outcomes framework that includes regular school attendance as a core measure and announced a data‑sharing working group; and Hope SF described place‑based education liaisons who connect families living in public housing to schools and services.

Community providers and parents urged more home visits, parent liaisons, incentives and culturally competent outreach. Speakers from Mission Neighborhood Centers and family resource centers described home visits, parent cafes and small incentives that have yielded measurable attendance improvements in pilot programs.

Supervisors pressed for concrete numbers and cross‑agency data sharing. Members requested SFUSD provide school‑ and subgroup‑level counts and asked staff to accelerate an MOU and technical agreements to allow shared use of attendance triggers with HSA, DCYF and juvenile probation. Supervisor Yee proposed an ad hoc work group under OCOF to develop a six‑month plan of programmatic and policy recommendations; the committee filed the hearing and directed follow‑up reporting and data delivery.