HOUSE MEMORIAL 11

56th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2024

INTRODUCED BY

Luis M. Terrazas and James G. Townsend and Tanya Mirabal Moya and Brian G. Baca and Jenifer Jones

 

 

 

 

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO CONVENE A WORK GROUP TO STUDY WAYS TO ASSIST SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER SCHOOLS WITH STRATEGIES TO REDUCE ABSENTEEISM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, FOCUSING ON APPROACHES AT A COMMUNITY AND FAMILY LEVEL FOR IDENTIFYING BARRIERS TO ATTENDANCE AND ROOT CAUSES OF ABSENTEEISM WHEN PRACTICABLE ON A CASE-BY-CASE BASIS; REQUESTING THAT THE WORK GROUP PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPLEMENTATION AND REPORT THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY AND FINDINGS TO THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE BY DECEMBER 1, 2024.

 

     WHEREAS, New Mexico's public schools are experiencing an

increased rate of student absenteeism, resulting in a growing number of students identified as chronically absent; and

     WHEREAS, a November 16, 2023 legislative education study

committee report indicates that New Mexico has seen its chronic

absenteeism rates soar in the last few school years, with data from the public education department showing an alarming forty percent chronic absenteeism rate for the 2022-2023 school year; that means one hundred thirty-four thousand two hundred fifty-nine students in New Mexico are chronically absent and missing three weeks out of an average one-hundred-eighty-day school calendar; and

     WHEREAS, the same report identified some of the known barriers to school attendance, including students facing housing insecurity, students with disabilities, English language learner students and economically disadvantaged students; however, work remains necessary to flesh out local- level barriers to school attendance, including root causes on a more personalized basis and the implementation of best practices to eliminate or minimize the negative impacts of identified barriers and root causes; and

     WHEREAS, in 2019, New Mexico enacted the Attendance for Success Act and, through that act, important strides have been made in school-specific student absence data collecting and reporting, and that act has helped schools develop tools to identify students with excessive absences as early as possible and provide early intervention support, including attendance improvement plans and parental notifications designed to provide collaboration among the school, the student and the family; and

     WHEREAS, the report issued by the legislative education study committee further points out that although the state has transitioned to a more prevention-oriented approach to student absenteeism that prioritizes family engagement and support, what may be missing are additional meaningful, localized and community-driven approaches tailored to individual communities and families and designed to address nuanced, differentiated and often personal root causes;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the public education department be requested to convene a work group to meet during the 2024 interim to:

          A. study the results of literature searches on best practices and innovative local-level approaches to identifying barriers to student attendance and root causes of student chronic absenteeism in public schools;

          B. gather and analyze statewide absence-related data as collected and reported pursuant to the Attendance for Success Act;

          C. gather and analyze data and comments from education stakeholders, including school personnel, students, parents and other family members and local community and civic organizations in various communities statewide; and

          D. based upon the research, data collected and analyzed and input from education stakeholders, identify and recommend strategies to reduce absenteeism. The strategies should focus on helping school districts and charter schools develop and implement at a local level a range of approaches for identifying, sometimes on a case-by-case basis, student barriers to attendance and root causes of chronic absenteeism, as well as suitable corrective or mitigating measures; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the public education department be requested to determine the number and composition of the work group members so as to best represent the various areas of the state and the diverse cultures, unique needs and challenges faced by school districts, charter schools and a range of education stakeholders; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group present the results of the study and the work group's findings and recommendations to the legislative education study committee no later than December 1, 2024. The work group's report should include:

          A. a summary of best practices for identifying barriers to attendance and root causes of chronic absenteeism found through the work group's research;

          B. recommendations for a uniform and consistent approach for the implementation of strategies to address absenteeism at a local school and community level;

          C. recommendations and suggested tools to assist schools in identifying root causes of student absenteeism on a local school level and, when practicable, on a case-by-case basis;

          D. recommendations on ways to enhance the abilities of schools acting together with students, parents, family members and local communities to address barriers to school attendance, including root causes, in an approach that reduces chronic absenteeism in a meaningful way; and

          E. any other findings or recommendations of the work group; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the legislative education study committee and the public education department for appropriate distribution.

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