TULSA, Okla. — As Tulsa Public School students head back to class on Aug. 20, the district is doubling down on its effort to make sure students show up to school.
“We know it’s very important to send a strong message to our community, our students, our families, and our schools that when you miss a lot of days of school, there’s things you may miss out on,” said Dr. Ebony Johnson.
Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Ebony Johnson says they’re cracking down on chronic absenteeism. It’s when students miss more than 10% of the school year – about 16 days.
"This past school year, we had over 16,000 students in our district that were considered chronically absent,” said Dr. Johnon. “It's going to be a challenge for our community to embrace the fact that this is not going away for us."
Dr. Johnson says they’re rolling out a new set of accountability measures to make sure students show up to class.
They include potentially:
- Becoming ineligible for sports or extracurricular activities
- Losing a transfer to a magnet or specialty school
- Being held back a grade
“I’m just still kind of shocked about all those people being out,” said Lorraine Cornelius.
Lorraine Cornelius, a TPS grandparent, is surprised so many students are missing class but she’s on board with the consequences.
“I believe it is needed,” said Cornelius.
Dr. Johnson says data shows students who are chronically absent score significantly lower on both daily assignments and yearly assessments.
“Those students fall way, way behind and it’s hard for them. It’s not because they’re not smart enough, because they are smart enough to do the work, it’s just that they do get far behind, and so apathy sets in, and they don’t always feel a level of connectivity,” said Dr. Johnson.
The district is working with families by putting out a 2-year calendar so parents can plan appointments around it. They’re streamlining attendance so it’s accurately marked at every school. They’re also holding family engagement sessions so students on the brink of chronic absenteeism can get the resources they need to come to class.
“Chronic absenteeism, we’re going to continue to decrease this in Tulsa Public Schools because when students are here, they learn,” said Dr. Johnson.
Tulsa Public Schools will welcome students back to class on Aug. 20.
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