When Krissy Johnson began studying Washington student attendance six years ago, she noticed a concerning pattern: Districts would often drop kids from their rolls after 20 missed days in a row, right when those students could no longer be counted for state funding.
And districts would often withdraw those students without first following all the steps required by the state’s truancy laws, such as referring students to community engagement boards and juvenile court, according to a 2022 report by the state’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, which oversees public K-12 education in Washington.
Johnson, OSPI’s assistant director of attendance and engagement, has been urging districts to change that. Districts should keep students enrolled until schools have completed the steps meant to ensure students are safe, she said.
