Why Oklahoma County District Attorney wants to prevent student absences

The latest data from Oklahoma City Public Schools shows about half of Oklahoma City high school students miss too many days of school. The Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office partnered with OKCPS to help find solutions. 

Q: What is Chronic Absenteeism?

A: Chronic Absenteeism is a nationwide problem where students miss at least 10% of the school year. Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna said the health of our community depends on students showing up for class. 

“Chronic absenteeism is so high,” Behenna said. “We all should care about that, and we should all come together.” 

Q: How many students miss class time in OKC?  

A: During the OKCPS 2023-2024 school year – about a third of elementary and middle school students missed ten percent of their school days. Forty-nine percent of high school students met the chronically absent metric.  

Q: What is being done to fix the issue? 

A: Last summer, OKCPS superintendent Jamie Polk and Behenna created a task force for community stakeholders designed to fix this problem. 

“When they’re not in school – make sure we understand the reasons why,” Behenna said. 

Sen. Carri Hicks (D-OKC), taught elementary school students before she began representing OKC at the state capitol. 

“We have to really increase school engagement,” Hicks said. 

Q: What contributes to school absences?

A: She said things like transportation and socioeconomic backgrounds become barriers for children. 

“We were able to embed social workers in our schools,” Hicks said. “Unless we have folks who are trained to really be able to engage families in a meaningful way, we’re not gonna see the results that we want.” 

A Wallet Hub analysis showed Oklahoma ranks near the bottom nationwide for vaccinations to prevent illness. 

“That is a big consideration and a big factor of why I feel like so many students are missing so many days of school,” Hicks said. 

Q: What are the long-term consequences? 

A: Apart from illness, Behenna said students who miss classes due to other reasons are at increased risk of contact with the criminal justice system. 

“That’s a path for that child that is eventually gonna end up in the DA's office,” Behenna said. 

Data points toward where communities can improve, but Behenna said behind each number is a person in need of support. 

“It’s our responsibility to make sure we have an educated workforce,” Behenna said. “Hopefully we prevent them from entering the criminal justice system as adults. It’s worth the investment of energy, time, and resources in my opinion.” 

Q: What’s next?

A: Behenna said she will continue talking with students directly about the consequences of missing school to motivate students to attend class. Hicks said more funding for public schools would help districts hire more support staff to help families. OKCPS is in the process of collecting more data to understand why students miss class time.