Ohio’s chronic absenteeism rate is dropping, but is more than 10% higher than pre-pandemic rates

Ohio’s chronic absenteeism rate has been trending downward in recent years, but still remains higher than it was pre-pandemic. 

The statewide chronic absenteeism rate — missing 10% or more of school hours for any reason — was 23.7% for the 2025-26 school year, according to the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. 

Ohio’s chronic absenteeism rate in recent years, according to ODEW: 

• 2024-25 — 24.9%
• 2023-24 — 25.6% 
• 2022-23 — 26.8%
• 2021-22 — 30.2% 
• 2020-21 — 24% 
• 2019-20 — 11.2% 
• 2018-19 — 16.7% 
• 2017-18 — 16%

“The incremental improvements are less and less,” said Arya Ansari, faculty associate at Ohio State University’s Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy.

“We don’t want to settle. We don’t want this curve to completely flatten. We want to continue to improve.” 

He hopes the state’s chronic absenteeism rate can drop back down to pre-pandemic levels in the next five to ten years.

“It’s not going to be next year,” Ansari said. “It’s not going to be the following year. So I think it’s a more moderate to longer-term outlook. … There’s not a single solution that’s going to move the needle to where we were pre-COVID.”

Students who are chronically absent do less well academically, socially, and behaviorally, Ansari said. 

A school day missed is equivalent to 2.5 days of lost math learning and 1.5 days of lost language and literacy learning, according to a 2022 report from the Crane Center. 

“Not every day is created equal, and a lot of learning happens while kids are in the classroom academically,” Ansari said. 

“Unfortunately it’s not as if kids just miss a day and that’s it. Kids miss considerably more than that.”

There is often a snowball effect when it comes to chronic absenteeism, he said. 

“It’s hard to get students to catch up,” Ansari said. 

A lot has to go right for a student to show up to school. 

“Underlying a lot of these barriers is poverty, which contributes to things like housing instability, food insecurity, physical and mental health of the child and of the family,” Ansari said. 

“School hours don’t necessarily map onto families who work evening shifts or multiple jobs.”

These Ohio school districts had the highest chronic absenteeism rates in Ohio for the 2025-26 school year, according to ODEW: 

1. Garfield Heights City Schools (Cuyahoga County) — 61.9% 
2. Youngstown City Schools (Mahoning County) — 56.7% 
3. Lorain City Schools (Lorain County) —  56.5%
4. Cleveland Municipal Schools (Cuyahoga County) — 54.2% 
5. East Cleveland City Schools (Cuyahoga County) — 54.2%
6. North College Hill City Schools (Hamilton County) — 54% 
7. Columbus City Schools (Franklin County) — 53.8% 
8. Mt. Healthy City Schools (Hamilton County) — 53.1% 
9. Lockland Local Schools (Hamilton County)  — 50.1% 
10. New Miami Local Schools (Butler County) — 44.7%

Columbus City Schools Superintendent Angela Chapman “believes reducing absenteeism is one of the best ways to improve student education and scores on tests, report cards and graduation,” district spokesperson Michael Brown said in an email. 

“Even a few days of missed school can hold a student back from their learning journey, from the first days of kindergarten through graduation.” 

Columbus City Schools, the state’s largest district with about 45,000 students, saw a slight increase in chronic absenteeism during the 2025-26 school year, up from 52.6% in 2024-25. The district’s chronic absenteeism rate was 65% during the 2021-22 school year. 

Prior to COVID-19, the district had a 32.7% chronic absenteeism rate for the 2019-20 school year. 

Stay in the Game! Attendance Network works with more than 200 school districts to improve school attendance. It is managed by Battelle Education and was founded in 2019 by the Cleveland Browns Foundation, ODEW, and Harvard’s Proving Ground.

“Students who have never been chronically absent are about three and a half times more likely to be able to read on grade level at the end of the third grade,” said Janet Walton, network director for the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network. 

There was a shift in the value of school attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic, Walton said. 

“It’s about helping (school districts) to identify student groups who are maybe struggling with chronic absenteeism, and then try to find out what the root cause is there, and really intentionally planning some interventions that address that,” she said.

“We’re seeing decreases, and we’re really pleased about that. But I think we know now we are in this for the long haul.”

Follow Ohio Capital Journal Reporter Megan Henry on X or on Bluesky.