Unpacking The Role of Student Health Challenges in Chronic Absenteeism

Session Submission Type: Panel

Abstract

Chronic absenteeism is a growing crisis in education, with millions of students missing 10% or more of the school year. It has negative impacts on various student outcomes such as academic achievement (Gottfried, 2010), substance use (Gakh et al., 2019), and on-time graduation and college enrollment (Smerillo et al., 2018). As these rates continue to rise, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic (Malkus, 2024), addressing the health-related causes of absenteeism is more urgent than ever.

Previous research has identified various predictors of chronic absenteeism (Gottfried, 2019), which Childs and Scanlon (2024) and Singer et al. (2021) describe as components of the ecology of chronic absenteeism. While socioeconomic background and neighborhood conditions are well-established contributors to absenteeism (Balfanz & Byrnes, 2012; Gottfried, 2014), the role of student health, often shaped by these same factors, remains one of the most persistent and under-addressed drivers of absenteeism. Chronic conditions like asthma or diabetes (Allison et al., 2019), as well as mental health challenges such as anxiety or depression (Çetinkaya & Bulut, 2023), can significantly interfere with attendance. Barriers to accessing healthcare, including transportation issues, limited insurance coverage, or the absence of school-based services, can further complicate matters and eventually lead students to miss school (Shankar et al., 2024; Yeung et al., 2011). Therefore, centering health in the conversation on attendance is critical to developing equitable, sustainable strategies that support the whole child and ensure students can be present, engaged, and ready to learn.

In this panel, we explore the deep and often overlooked connection between health and chronic absenteeism. Drawing on perspectives from public health and education, panelists will unpack how physical and mental health conditions contribute to school absence and how schools, districts, and health systems can better collaborate to reduce preventable absences.

The first paper illustrates how failing to access healthcare is associated with students' health-related absences and why those healthcare needs were unmet. The second paper identifies chronic absenteeism trajectories and compares healthcare utilization across different trajectory classes. This paper also examines the varying use and effects of school-based health centers for students who are and are not chronically absent. The third paper estimates the role of student wellbeing in chronic absenteeism, with a focus on mental health difficulties and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Finally, the fourth paper presents a meta-analysis of interventions aimed at reducing absenteeism, providing insights into the effectiveness of varying types of absenteeism interventions.

In a diverse array of settings and using varied methods, collectively, preliminary findings from these papers offer growing evidence on the impact of student health (including mental health) and health care support services on chronic absenteeism. More research is needed to understand variations across contexts and ways for schools, districts, and health systems to possibly reduce health-related absences. This panel addresses how different types of health needs are related to absenteeism, highlighting both systemic barriers and promising interventions.

Policy Area

• Education

Secondary Policy Area

• Health Policy

Discussants

• Joshua Childs, The University of Texas at Austin

• Jacob Kirksey, Texas Tech University

Organizer

• Su Yon Choi, Michigan State University

Individual Presentations

• Examining School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) As Vehicles to Improve Health Outcomes Among Chronically Absent Students - Presenting Author: Rebecca Dudovitz, University of California - Los Angeles

• A Meta-Analytic Review of Interventions Targeting the Attendance Crisis - Presenting Author: Vi-Nhuan Le, NORC at the University of Chicago

• Missing Care, Missing Class—Analyzing the Overlooked Relationship Between Unmet Healthcare Needs and Absenteeism - Presenting Author: Wendy Castillo, Montclair State University; Non-Presenting Co-Author: Jeremy Singer, Wayne State University

• Understanding the Role of Student Wellbeing in Chronic Absenteeism - Presenting Author: Su Yon Choi, Michigan State University; Non-Presenting Co-Author: Jerome Graham, Michigan State University