Hilliard promotes attendance with new policy

by Addison Maley

Editor-in-Chief

The following story was written by a student on the staff of The Jaguar Times as part of Hilliard Bradley High School’s Journalism Production course.

In an effort to reduce the number of students cutting class and staying home unnecessarily, Hilliard City Schools is taking advantage of the new school year to implement harsher attendance policies.

Shorter allowances for family vacations and stricter hallway-pass rules are just two strategies being employed by the district to ensure students are present in class.

In a district-wide email to parents on August 17th, HCSD outlined the importance of consistent attendance, “with the hope of starting a conversation” about a “state and national trend of increased student absences.”

The message included each student’s absence rate for the 2022-2023 school year, as well as the average absence rate of the district overall: 7.22%.

The number of chronically absent students, or those who have missed at least 10% of the year, has increased dramatically throughout central Ohio since Covid-19. Though some districts have recovered slightly, none have returned to pre-Covid attendance.

Data: Ohio Department of Education; Chart: Simran Parwani/Axios

Social Studies teacher Mrs. Wong has noticed a “humongous” increase in absences over the past few years, and is doubtful that trend will stop. “[Policy] worked when there was a grade attached to attendance. When I started at Bradley, [teachers] could fail students for six unexcused absences.”

Additionally, Bradley is cracking down on bathroom and hallway pass rules. Digital passes are no longer accepted, and each student must have a physical pass to indicate where they are going during class. The existing 10-10 rule is also being more harshly enforced to prevent class-skipping, meaning students are not to leave class within the first or last ten minutes of the period.

While some students are adapting well to the rules, others question their effectiveness. Siman Musse (12) has noticed “it’s helped with noticing when students are skipping, but at the end of the day people will always find a way. If someone is continuously abusing [leaving class], it seems like an issue with the student and not the whole school.”

Despite these concerns, the district emphasizes the importance of consistent attendance, as “going to school is an opportunity… to build routines that help reduce stress, connect to friends and teachers” and “engage in learning.”

Additionally, they cite research showing “students who are chronically absent are less likely to read proficiently by third grade, and are more likely to drop out of high school.” While chronically absent students are a minority, it is clear that attendance matters greatly to both academic and social success.

Ready for Tomorrow takes on a far more literal meaning this year as Hilliard City Schools pushes for every student to be prepared and present each day.