Student Support Can Solve Chronic Absenteeism in Michigan

Michigan cannot improve its education system until students are actually in school, but chronic absenteeism isn’t simply a policy problem; it's a student support problem. Until we address the barriers keeping kids out of classrooms, no amount of accountability, incentives, mandates or enforcement will move the needle.

Through our years as the CEO and chair of the board at Communities In Schools® (CIS®) of Michigan, one fact has remained painfully consistent: Michigan’s attendance rates aren’t good.

Nearly 30% of Michigan students miss 18 or more days of school each year, almost a full month of lost educational and developmental opportunities. Among economically disadvantaged students, the rate climbs to 38.6%. Despite modest improvements, we remain far from the 19.7% chronic absenteeism rate we saw before the COVID pandemic. This is not a problem that is going away. And unless we confront it head-on, it will continue to shape outcomes for all Michigan students.

The question is “why?” At CIS of Michigan, which partners with 62 schools in 12 counties and serves roughly 33,000 students each year, we don’t have to guess. Before we begin work in any school, our team completes a needs assessment to determine the school’s primary goal in one of four categories: attendance, behavior, coursework or social-emotional learning. Last year, one-third of our partner schools identified attendance as their top priority; half of those cited transportation barriers as a major impediment.

We know that some attendance issues are rooted in a lack of support for students confronted with transportation challenges — and we’ve seen the positive outcomes possible by providing that support. But transportation is just one piece of the absenteeism problem.

For communities already grappling with inequity, the impact compounds.

Chronic absenteeism is a web of intersecting challenges: inconsistent housing, untreated physical and mental health needs, caregiving responsibilities, poverty, food insecurity, and instability all contribute to the attendance dilemma.

This is where CIS steps in. Our full-time student support coordinators are not just caring adults. They are often graduates of the schools they serve, trusted neighbors and problem-solvers. They are the people who notice when a student hasn’t been to class, who knock on the door, call home, arrange counseling appointments, drop off alarm clocks or winter coats, connect families to basic needs and food, and build relationships that make school feel welcoming instead of overwhelming.

And when they do, it works: last year, 65% of students referred to CIS specifically because of absenteeism showed up to school more often.

To rebuild a culture of attendance, we must rebuild the conditions that make attendance possible. According to a 2024 Ipsos poll, 92% of families want their children in school. They simply need help overcoming barriers that stand in their way.

If Michigan wants to reduce chronic absenteeism, we ― the public, private, and political sectors ― must invest in what works: dedicated and intentional staff members in schools full-time, coordinated integrated student supports and strong community partnerships that make attendance a reality, not an aspiration.

Lasting change will require a statewide commitment. Attendance is a metric, yes — but more importantly, it is a measure of whether our systems are supporting children. When we support the child, attendance follows. And when attendance follows, everything else in education can finally begin to move forward.

Mallory DePrekel is CEO of Communities In Schools of Michigan (CIS), and David Hecker is chair of the CIS of Michigan Board and former president of AFT-MI.