Chronic Absenteeism in Schools: How Are East Hampton Students Doing?

By Jack Kramer, Correspondent

EAST HAMPTON, CT – East Hampton students had a chronic absenteeism rate of 7.4 percent last year. For the state of Connecticut, the rate of chronic absence was 9.6 percent statewide.

The worst school district in the state was Hartford, with a 22.4 percent chronic absent rate; the best was Madison, with a 1.9 percent rate.

Chronic absence is defined as missing 10 percent or greater of the total number of days enrolled during the school year for any reason.

It includes both excused, unexcused, out-of-school suspensions, and in-school suspensions that last more than one-half of the school day. For example, a student who has been enrolled for the first 30 school days at the beginning of the school year and has been absent three of those days is chronically absent.

Over the last school year, rates of chronic absenteeism in Connecticut schools fell in every student subgroup and in the state overall, continuing a trend that started during the 2012-13 school year.

Patch file photo.