"Oakland Unified School District leaders see attendance rates as critical to their plan to address a $100 million budget gap. Increasing attendance by even 1% overall could add $5 million in revenue. That's because state funds, which make up the biggest pot of money for the district, are based on a funding formula that uses students' average daily attendance rates. Raising attendance a few percentage points could mean millions more for a district searching for a way out of its structural deficit."
"During the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school years, around 14 to 15% of students were chronically absent, meaning they missed more than 10% of school. In the 2018-2019 school year, when Oakland teachers went on strike for seven days, chronic absenteeism rose to nearly 32%. In the school year ending in 2022, it reached 45%, and in 2023, 61%. Today, that number has dropped dramatically, but about 25% of OUSD students are still chronically absent, higher than county and state averages, which are below 20%."
State funding for the district is tied to students' average daily attendance, so small attendance improvements translate directly into millions of dollars. A 1% increase in attendance could yield $5 million, while a 2% increase could produce $10 million, covering roughly 10% of the $100 million deficit. Chronic absenteeism rose sharply during recent years, peaking during the pandemic and strike, and remains elevated at about 25% of students, above county and state averages. Fiscal advisors are preparing a balanced-budget plan, and leaders emphasize that one-time funds cannot resolve long-term structural deficits without boosting consistent attendance.
Read at The Oaklandside
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