BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Some Vermont schools say they’re struggling with a byproduct of the pandemic — chronic absenteeism. Now, a new program is helping to try to keep students in their seats every day.
UVM Health Network pediatrician Heidi Schumacher faces a daunting task every day — making sure her patients and their peers are in the classroom and ready to learn.
Schumacher is part of a team that’s researching ways to help decrease chronic absenteeism in schools, particularly in rural areas. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10 percent or more of school days for any reason.
“Is it a health concern? Is it transportation, housing, child care? Instead of schools and health care trying to address those challenges in their own silos, we can work together as one team to wrap around those families,” Schumacher said. “Every single day at school matters.”
Pediatricians, mental health officials, and school leaders at the White River Valley Supervisory Union are working together to find solutions. “By having really what I see is that those three organizations come together, we can better support our families, get our kids in our building and make sure they’re learning,” said district Superintendent Jamie Kinnarney.
During the pandemic, students were told to quarantine and stay home for extended periods of time. Now, schools are trying to find ways to reassert to communities the expectations of when is best to keep kids home and when they should be in the classroom.
“Make certain our families understand some of the provisions we had during the global pandemic, those are not still why you would keep a student home necessarily now,” Kinnarney said.
Schumacher says the partnership between health professionals and educators doesn’t just benefit student growth. “When we are able to support regular attendance for every child, we are able to also support the economic viability of communities,” she said.
While addressing absenteeism is a priority, it’s important to note school districts typically set their own policies for attendance, along with what is or isn’t excused.