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PGCPS officials warn rising chronic absenteeism is linked to lower core-course outcomes
Summary
At the Dec. 15 committee meeting, PGCPS staff reported quarter‑1 increases in chronic absenteeism (elementary ~17%→19%, middle 12%→16%, high school 25%→28%) and presented data showing chronically absent students have markedly higher failing rates and lower pass rates, especially for multilingual learners and students with disabilities at the high-school level.
Anthony Whittington, instructional supervisor for elementary reading and English language arts, presented the committee with quarter‑1 chronic absenteeism data and its relationship to core-content course performance. Whittington defined chronic absenteeism as missing 10% or more of membership days and said the measure counts for 15% of Maryland state report-card accountability.
Whittington reported increases in chronic absenteeism in quarter 1 compared with the prior year: elementary rising from about 17% to 19% (as presented), middle school from about 12% to 16%, and high school from about 25% to 28%. He cautioned the calculation resets daily and numbers can change as days pass and data are updated.
The presentation showed a strong negative correlation between chronic absenteeism and course grades. For example, Whittington reported chronically absent middle-school students had a combined D/E failing rate of about 30% versus 12% for non‑chronically absent peers. In high school, he said roughly 45% of chronically absent students received an E in at least one core content course, compared with about 11% of non‑chronically absent students receiving an E. Whittington also presented core-content pass-rate breakdowns by subgroup: elementary pass rates were high (about 97–98%); middle-school pass rates ranged roughly 93–98% with the Hispanic subgroup near 93%; high-school overall pass was about 80%, with the Hispanic subgroup at about 72% and Asian subgroup about 91%. He flagged high-school multilingual learners at 67% pass and students with disabilities at 77% pass as critical need areas.
Board Chair Jonathan Briggs asked whether holiday re-enrollment churn or ICE enforcement were contributing factors. Whittington said district procedures require schools to begin withdrawal after 10 consecutive unexcused absences and that his team’s preliminary work did not show a significant ICE-related impact on attendance for currently enrolled students. He said some movement/unenrollment occurs but appears less common than in prior years.
On interventions, staff said every school assigns a pupil personnel worker and professional school counselor who monitor attendance and coordinate supports; district teams review data quarterly and can deploy lab courses, targeted interventions, and ‘‘wraparound’’ supports as needed. Dr. Kia McDaniel and Dr. Judith White said schools are expected to engage families earlier rather than waiting for summer remediation. Board member Buser Strother asked how families should expect to be engaged when absences and grades combine to create risk; staff pointed to existing pupil personnel processes and to the district’s use of instructional and student-support teams.
Whittington and data staff concluded by offering to provide updated figures after the November/January updates and by noting the district dashboard contains evolving attendance data. The committee is set to receive further updates in 2026.
