Chronic absence in Maine

Where things stand, what state rules ask of each role, and what is changing. For school and district leaders.

School year 2024-25

24.07%

of students were chronically absent²

Chronically absent means enrolled for at least 10 days and missed 10% or more of their days enrolled, whether absences were excused or unexcused.³

U.S. rate: 22.6% (2024-25)⁵

Maine chronic absence by school year
School year	Chronically absent
2021-22	31%
2022-23	27%
2023-24	24%
2024-25	24.07%

Maine chronic absence by school year

School year

Chronically absent

2021-22

31%

2022-23

27%

2023-24

24%

2024-25

24.07%

The numbers

In 2024-25, 24.07% of Maine students were chronically absent, according to Maine Department of Education figures from a public data request².
That is down from 31% in 2021-22 and 27% in 2022-23, but almost unchanged from 24% in 2023-24^4,2.
Before the pandemic, AEI's compilation of state-reported data put Maine at 17% in 2018-19¹.
The rate rises with grade level: Maine DOE says about 1 in 5 elementary students, 1 in 4 middle school students and 1 in 3 high school students are chronically absent².
Maine's 2024-25 rate of 24.07% is above the US rate of 22.6% for 2024-25 reported by AEI^2,5.

What state rules ask of each role

Teachers

Under state law, an absence is excused for personal health (including physical, mental and behavioral health), an appointment with a health professional that must be made during the regular school day, observance of a recognized religious holiday when it is required during the regular school day, a family emergency, or an approved planned absence for a personal or educational purpose¹⁰.
An absence is also excused for education disruption from homelessness, unplanned psychiatric hospitalization, unplanned hospitalization for a medical emergency, foster care placement, youth development center placement, or another out-of-district placement not otherwise authorized by an individualized education plan, another education plan, or a superintendent's agreement under section 5205, subsection 2; this reason does not apply to a student out of school for 10 or more consecutive school days because of a planned absence, such as a family event or planned hospitalization or recovery¹⁰.
A truant student's intervention plan may include frequent communication between the teacher and the family, changes in the learning environment, tutoring (including peer tutoring) and placement into different classes⁸.
For the state's chronic absence measure every absence counts: a student enrolled for a minimum of ten (10) days who is absent for 10% or more of the days enrolled is chronically absent, whether the absences were excused or unexcused⁶.

Counselors

A truant student's intervention plan may include mentoring, student counseling, consideration of multiple pathways under section 4703, attendance contracts, and referral to other agencies for family services⁸.
Each superintendent, with school board approval, must establish a dropout prevention committee for each school unit every year; its members include a teacher and a school counselor chosen by the unit's teacher organization¹¹.
The committee must study dropouts and truancy and the need for alternative education programs from kindergarten to grade 12, make recommendations, and meet at least annually to review its plan and make recommendations to the school board¹¹.
Under one exception to compulsory attendance, a student does not have to attend if the student has reached age 15 or completed 9th grade, has a parent's permission, has the principal's approval for a suitable program of work and study or training, has permission from the school board or its designee, and has agreed in writing with the parent and the board or designee to meet annually until the 17th birthday to review the student's educational needs; if the request is denied, the parent may appeal to the commissioner¹⁰.

Attendance team

A student who is subject to compulsory attendance is truant if the student has completed grade 6 and has the equivalent of 10 full days of unexcused absences or 7 consecutive school days of unexcused absences during a school year⁸.
For a student subject to compulsory attendance who is at least 6 years of age and has not completed grade 6, or who is enrolled in a public day school, is at least 5 years of age and has not completed grade 6, the trigger is the equivalent of 7 full days or 5 consecutive school days of unexcused absences during a school year⁸.
A truant student must be referred to the school's student assistance team, or to school personnel the superintendent designates under the unit's intervention system (section 4710), to find the cause of the truancy and assess the effect of the absences, as well as any future absences; if a negative effect exists, the team or designated personnel must develop an intervention plan to address the absences and their effect. If the student or parents do not come to scheduled meetings, school administrators may still implement the plan⁸.
The superintendent must appoint one or more attendance coordinators and fill vacancies as they occur; a coordinator must be a professionally certified or registered person in the mental health, social welfare or educational system who is qualified to carry out the duties under State Board of Education rules⁹.
A coordinator's duties include, but are not limited to: interviewing a student whose attendance is irregular and meeting with the student and parents to find the cause, then filing a written report with the principal; filing an annual report with the superintendent on truancy activities, findings and recommendations; serving on the dropout prevention committee; and serving as the school's liaison with local law enforcement on student absenteeism⁹.

Principals & districts

When the principal determines that a student is truant, the principal must notify the superintendent within 5 school days of the last unexcused absence⁸.
The superintendent must develop procedures to refer truant students to the student assistance team or designated personnel; these may include naming the staff who notify the team and who invite the parents and student to any resulting meeting, a timeline for the meeting and the intervention plan, a plan for future absences, and a plan for reporting the plan's results⁸.
If the intervention plan cannot correct the truancy, the superintendent must serve the parent, in hand or by registered mail, a written notice that attendance is required by law; it must explain the parent's right to inspect the attendance records and the attendance coordinator's and principal's reports, explain that failing to send the student to school and keep the student in regular attendance is a civil violation and will jeopardize the student's status in the grade, state that the superintendent may notify the local law enforcement department of a violation of section 5053-A (the parent's civil violation) and may notify the Department of Health and Human Services of a violation under subsection 1, paragraph C, which covers a student subject to compulsory attendance who is at least 6 years of age, has not completed grade 6 and has the equivalent of 7 full days or 5 consecutive school days of unexcused absences during a school year; and it must outline the plan and the steps taken⁸.
Before notifying local law enforcement, the superintendent must schedule at least one meeting under the referral procedures and may invite a local prosecutor; if, after 3 school days after the notice is served, the student remains truant and the parent and student refuse to attend that meeting, the superintendent must report the facts to local law enforcement, which may act against the parent unless the student is at once placed in an appropriate school or otherwise meets the attendance law⁸.
Each superintendent must send the commissioner an annual report before October 1 giving the number of truants in the preceding school year, the unit's efforts on truancy, actions taken (including the number of truants referred to the student assistance team) and any other truancy information the commissioner requests⁸.

What changed lately

Maine DOE's Maine Engagement and Attendance Center, a statewide collaboration on chronic absence, has been meeting since January 2024¹².
In August 2024 the center launched the Maine DOE Attendance Toolkit for schools, and in early 2025 the department launched a four-part learning series on it^12,4.
In a November 2024 amendment to its ESSA state plan, Maine DOE gave the chronic absenteeism indicator lesser weight: schools rated emerging on all academic indicators and emerging or developing on chronic absenteeism are identified for Tier III support, which is designated for schools receiving Title I funding⁷.
From September 17, 2026 to May 20, 2027, the center is running a monthly virtual Attendance Support Series with Maine DOE data experts¹³.

How the state holds schools to it

Maine's Model of School Support, the state's accountability system, uses student attendance (chronic absenteeism) as the federally required indicator of school quality or student success⁶.
For this indicator, a student is chronically absent if enrolled for a minimum of ten (10) days and absent for 10% or more of the days enrolled; all absences, excused and unexcused, count⁶.
Under the state's ESSA plan, each student group of at least 10 students meets the chronic absenteeism target when its rate is below 10% and does not meet it at 10% or higher; groups under 10 students are not rated⁷.
Schools get one of four determinations on each indicator: emerging toward, developing toward, meeting, or excelling state expectations⁷.
Chronic absenteeism carries lesser weight: schools rated emerging on all academic indicators and emerging or developing on chronic absenteeism are identified for Tier III support, which is designated for schools receiving Title I funding⁷.

Efforts with results

At Eliot Elementary School, a pre-K to grade 3 school of about 275 students, chronic absenteeism peaked at 23 percent in 2022-23, then fell to 11 percent in 2023-24 and six percent in 2024-25, according to a Maine DOE newsroom profile¹⁴.
The school shared its absenteeism rate with families monthly, with short notes on why attendance matters, and aims for every child to have at least two trusted adults¹⁴.