- Data collected by the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) showed that 20.9% of students in public schools, including students in adult education courses, missed 21 or more school days during the 2021-2022 academic year.
- In measuring student attendance, the department looks at students who miss 21 or more days and students absent for 10% or more of the academic year. The 2021-2022 data showed that 32.3%, or more than 1 million students, were absent for 10% or more of the year.
Inweekly requested from FDOE the 2022-23 attendance records for Escambia County Public Schools. The report revealed that 21.1%, or more than 9,300 students, missed 21 or more days, and 33.9% missed 10% or more of the year.
The report also showed that the highest-performing elementary schools had only 15% or less of their enrollment miss 21 days or more.
| Grade | Total | Absent 21+ | ||
| PENSACOLA BEACH | A | 130 | 4 | 3% |
| N. B. COOK ELEMENTARY | A | 522 | 25 | 5% |
| CORDOVA PARK | A | 687 | 58 | 8% |
| A. K. SUTER ELEMENTARY | A | 610 | 67 | 11% |
| PINE MEADOW ELEMENTARY | A | 789 | 97 | 12% |
| HELLEN CARO ELEMENTARY | A | 717 | 98 | 14% |
| BLUE ANGELS ELEMENTARY | B | 846 | 117 | 14% |
| KINGSFIELD ELEMENTARY | A | 978 | 147 | 15% |
| SCENIC HEIGHTS | B | 880 | 132 | 15% |
| PLEASANT GROVE | A | 623 | 95 | 15% |
The lowest-performing schools had one of four students miss 21 or more days – O.J. Semmes had a third of its students miss 21 or more days.
The exception was the Byrneville charter school, which only has 198 students and maintains a B despite a 29% rate.
| Grade | Total | Absent 21+ | ||
| LINCOLN PARK ELEMENTARY | F | 311 | 77 | 25% |
| REINHARDT HOLM | C | 540 | 136 | 25% |
| SHERWOOD ELEMENTARY | C | 614 | 156 | 25% |
| BELLVIEW ELEMENTARY | C | 630 | 167 | 27% |
| GLOBAL LEARNING ACADEMY | F | 556 | 152 | 27% |
| WARRINGTON ELEMENTARY | F | 388 | 107 | 28% |
| OAKCREST ELEMENTARY | C | 584 | 163 | 28% |
| C. A. WEIS ELEMENTARY | C | 599 | 173 | 29% |
| MONTCLAIR ELEMENTARY | F | 466 | 136 | 29% |
| BYRNEVILLE ELEMENTARY | B | 198 | 58 | 29% |
| NAVY POINT ELEMENTARY | C | 549 | 167 | 30% |
| O. J. SEMMES ELEMENTARY | D | 403 | 132 | 33% |
It should be noted that the Jackie Harris Charter School has 221 students and 35.3% were absent 21 days or more.
The Florida Department of Education also tracks students who were enrolled 10 or days in a school and how many missed 10% of those days – in other words, one day or more every two weeks.
Nineteen elementary had a third or greater miss 10% or more school days.
| Grade | Enroll 10 or more Days | Absent 10% | ||
| L. D. MCARTHUR | C | 678 | 224 | 33.00% |
| FERRY PASS ELEMENTARY | C | 652 | 219 | 33.60% |
| LONGLEAF ELEMENTARY | C | 616 | 228 | 37.00% |
| LINCOLN PARK ELEMENTARY | F | 302 | 112 | 37.10% |
| BRENTWOOD ELEMENTARY | D | 487 | 199 | 40.90% |
| ENSLEY ELEMENTARY | D | 554 | 231 | 41.70% |
| WEST PENSACOLA | C | 559 | 238 | 42.60% |
| REINHARDT HOLM | C | 531 | 228 | 42.90% |
| MYRTLE GROVE | C | 534 | 231 | 43.30% |
| SHERWOOD ELEMENTARY | C | 606 | 271 | 44.70% |
| BELLVIEW ELEMENTARY | C | 620 | 277 | 44.70% |
| BYRNEVILLE ELEMENTARY , | B | 198 | 90 | 45.50% |
| GLOBAL LEARNING ACADEMY | F | 553 | 252 | 45.60% |
| C. A. WEIS ELEMENTARY | C | 576 | 271 | 47.00% |
| OAKCREST ELEMENTARY | C | 575 | 278 | 48.30% |
| MONTCLAIR ELEMENTARY | F | 456 | 221 | 48.50% |
| WARRINGTON ELEMENTARY | F | 381 | 188 | 49.30% |
| NAVY POINT ELEMENTARY | C | 540 | 272 | 50.40% |
| O. J. SEMMES ELEMENTARY | D | 392 | 238 | 60.70% |
Half of Jackie Harris Preparatory Academy students missed 10% or more days.
Dig Deeper:
The Escambia Children’s Trust awarded the Boys & Girls Club of the Emerald Coast $2.1 million over three years to improve the school attendance of 75% of its participants as part of its four goals, according to its contract. The club’s Montclair program will need to show improvement in the school’s 29% rate of students missing 21 or days and its 48.5% of students missing 10% or more of the school year.
Three other Out-of-School programs funded by the Trust among their measured outcomes school attendance. The Dixon School’s summer program will increase fall school attendance by 5%. Epps Christian Center will decrease absentee rates by 50%. James B. Washington Education & Sports will improve attendance by 80%.
- The providers will issue their final reports for their first year in February.
Last month at the House Education Quality Subcommittee, Hedy Chang, founder and executive director of Attendance Works, said, “If you are chronically absent, it actually predicts higher suspension rates, lower achievement in middle school, and a greater likelihood to drop out of high school.”
After hearing from experts, House Education Quality Chairwoman Dana Trabulsy, R-Fort Pierce, said, “If we are not helping children to realize that school is important, then how are they going to realize that work is important? How are they going to show up to work? These are our future leaders, and we need to invest more in this important topic.”