Hedy Chang

Aug 30, 2024 | aei.org | Nat Malkus |Hedy Chang |Denise Forte

Since the pandemic, schools have become political battlegrounds, where seemingly every issue is polarized: school closures, mask mandates, teachings about race and sexuality, school choice, the content available in school libraries, and even reading and math instruction.  Indeed, two of us testified to our differences on some of these topics in the same congressional hearing. But chronic absenteeism stands apart from these contentious issues.

Aug 29, 2024 | thehill.com | Hedy Chang |Denise Forte |Nat Malkus

Since the pandemic, schools have become political battlegrounds, where seemingly every issue is polarized: school closures, mask mandates, teachings about race and sexuality, school choice, the content available in school libraries, and even reading and math instruction. Indeed, two of us testified to our differences on some of these topics in the same congressional hearing. But chronic absenteeism stands apart from these contentious issues.

Apr 30, 2024 | edweek.org | Hedy Chang

As almost all school people know by now, the number of public school students who are chronically absent has ballooned. Our analysis showed chronic absenteeism at almost 30 percent or 14.7 million students during the 2021-22 school year, nearly double prepandemic levels. They remained high in 2022-23, according to data available from states.

Aug 23, 2023 | future-ed.org | Hedy Chang

The battle against chronic student absenteeism has traditionally been waged in schools and communities, focusing on ways to engage students and families, address health and transportation barriers, and calibrate the level of support each student needs.