TOLEDO, Ohio — In the 2024 school district report cards released by the Ohio Department of Education, Toledo Public Schools received one star in its graduation category, indicating it is not meeting state standards when it comes to the number of those graduating in the allotted time.
This is an issue school leaders say stems from chronic absenteeism.
"If they have struggled, don't have a lot of credits, you see discouraged. They're discouraged and they feel like 'I'm never going to get this done.'" said Heather Baker, TPS executive director of community engagement and student support.
It's a feeling some students may be dealing with when it comes to attending school.
"I am 17, I'm 18. I have four credits, how can I finish? How am I going to get through this?" is a scenario Baker said students may be asking themselves about when deciding on whether they'll go to classes.
Baker said since the COVID-19 pandemic, the district has seen a spike in the number of students missing class, whether the absences are excused or not.
"A lot of that is trauma," she said. "We do have trauma post-COVID. We have a lot of students who are dealing with some heavy things."
Both types of absences factor into TPS's chronic absenteeism rate, which was around 40% for the school year of 2024 and mostly made up of high-schoolers.
Shawn Mahone Sr, the founder of Toledo-based behavior-modification program Young Men and Women for Change/Change Academy, said he's also noticed discouragement in the children his organization helps.
"I think there has to be a bigger impact when it comes to social emotional learning because COVID has taken us so back that we are now reaping the effects of what's been taking place in regard to that," Mahone said.
While TPS is still battling chronic absenteeism, this year compared to 2023 shows the district had a 2% reduction in chronic absenteeism and a 7% reduction from 2023 to the previous year.
TPS also has a Get Connected Truancy Prevention Program that works closely with students in helping them get to class.