Chronic absenteeism has been an issue for most school districts since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Amphitheater Public Schools Superintendent Todd Jaeger said in a way, the state did it to itself.
“I mean, for about a year and a half, two years, we essentially told kids and their parents that it was OK to miss a lot of school,” Jaeger said, referring to when school districts told parents not to bring in any students who showed cold-like symptoms.
The Arizona Department of Education defines chronic absence as a student missing 10% or more of the school year, excused or unexcused, while enrolled at a given school. In a typical 180-day school year, this equates to missing 18 or more days of school.
Amphi had a 43% chronic absenteeism rate in the 2021-2022 school year and has consistently brought it down each year, dropping to 22% in 2024-25.
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He said once students returned to in-person classes, districts had to re-educate parents on why attending school is important.
Read more on chronic absenteeism rates across Pima County school districts here.
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Tucson-area schools are battling chronic absenteeism. Here's how they're doing
Sierra Blaser
Reporter
