About 65,000 Chicago public school children were absent from the first day of school, down from 103,000 absences last year, officials announced Wednesday.
Officials described the improvement as a major gain–even unprecedented–but acknowledged they were not entirely satisfied with the results of a 10-day publicity blitz that urged kids to show up on Tuesday.
“It’s tremendous progress, but we have to still get better,” schools CEO Arne Duncan said. “When you get 40,000 more students in school, that’s a major accomplishment. We’ve never had that sort of increase ever. It’s unprecedented.”
About 85 percent of the system’s kids attended class Tuesday, compared with last year’s 76 percent. The system’s average daily attendance rate is almost 92 percent.
Mayor Richard Daley’s new schools team, appointed in June and overseeing its first opening day, attributed the better turnout to support from ministers, corporations and the media.
Last year, when first-day absences soared above 100,000, officials said the Aug. 22 start date was too early for families. Returning to a post-Labor Day start this year, the system posted a first-day attendance of 372,891 students out of a projected enrollment of 437,720–or 64,829 absences.
Last year’s first-day turnout was 332,184, and the year before was 349,673.
When asked why tens of thousands of students still were absent, Chicago Board of Education President Michael Scott responded: “Truancy.”
One local school activist, Julie Woestehoff of Parents United for Responsible Education, applauded Duncan and Scott for reaching out to students and parents during the publicity campaign. Still, she said, “65,000 students are too many to be out of school, particularly if they are missing a real educational experience, which was what the school system was promising.”
Meanwhile, public outcry continued over changes to the system’s busing policy, which now directs that 25,000 students be picked up at their neighborhood schools instead of at the corner near their homes.
A day after some buses didn’t show up at all and scores of others were an hour or more late, Duncan contended that service was better Wednesday and said the initiative will get further “tweaking” over the next few weeks.
Officials said one bus company lost 10 routes Wednesday because of its inability to provide enough drivers, and those routes were reassigned to another firm.
Ald. Patrick O’Connor (40th) expressed concern about so many neighborhood schools being “turned into bus barns.”
“The busing plan might need some fine-tuning, or it might need some fine scrapping,” said O’Connor, chairman of the City Council’s Education Committee.
O’Connor said the board’s new initiative suffered from poor planning. For example, under existing city ordinances, parking near schools is prohibited between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., he said. But most buses begin arriving to pick up children at 6:30 a.m. when cars are still parked along the city’s narrow side streets, he said.
The system buses 40,000 to 45,000 students because they attend magnet schools, are being diverted from overcrowded schools, or need special services because of disabilities. The board rehired its private bus manager, TransPar Management Services, in a rare emergency vote this summer for $7 million over three years.
