The state department of education has released the most recent school and district chronic absence data report with the Yazoo City schools showing a chronic absentee rate of 37 percent and Yazoo County School District reporting 30.6 percent.
Of the 1,865 total student population within the Yazoo City Schools, 690 students are reported as being chronically absent. Of the 1,223 total student population within the Yazoo County schools, 374 are reported as being chronically absent.
According to the Mississippi Department of Education, chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10 percent or more of the school year (equivalent to 18 days) for any reason, which includes excused and unexcused absences and suspensions. The 2024-25 state report shows approximately one-third of all absences were excused.
Within the local schools, a breakdown of the chronic absentee rate includes:
• Yazoo City Schools: McCoy Elementary School, 21.7 percent; Woolfolk Middle School, 34.3 percent; and Yazoo City High School, 62.9 percent.
• Yazoo County Schools: Linwood Elementary School, 28.8 percent; Yazoo County Middle School, 28.6 percent; Bentonia Gibbs School, 13.6 percent; and Yazoo County High School, 47.5 percent.
Overall, within the state, reports show Mississippi’s chronic absenteeism rate rose to 27.6% percent, representing 120,408 students who missed important instructional time in the last school year. This reflects an increase from the 2023-24 rate of 24.4 percent.
“When students are not in school, they are missing valuable instruction from their teachers and social interaction with their peers,” said Dr. Lance Evans, state superintendent of education. “Missing 18 or more days of school has serious consequences for academic achievement and long-term success. We need families, educators and community partners to join forces to combat chronic absenteeism.”
The report shows that the chronic absenteeism rates declined in elementary and middle school from 2023-24 to 2024-25 but increased from 30 percent to 39 percent in high school. This suggests excessive absences among high school students have driven the statewide rise in chronic absenteeism. The data also show variation across districts, with some communities experiencing higher rates than others.
MDE encourages districts to promote regular school attendance among students and families and to re-engage students when absences accumulate.
MDE’s efforts to help districts and schools address absenteeism include:
School attendance officers working statewide to help families eliminate barriers to school attendance
MDE’s attendance awareness campaign, Every School Day Counts – Attend to Achieve, that highlights the benefits of regular school attendance and provides an Attendance Awareness Toolkit with resources and materials to promote attendance
Partnership with the National Dropout Prevention Center to provide professional development for district and school teams
September 2025 Statewide Chronic Absenteeism and Dropout Prevention Conference focused on innovative strategies to boost student engagement and best practices to effectively address chronic absenteeism
MDE began reporting chronic absence data in 2016. The lowest rate of 13 percent was in 2018-19. The COVID-19 pandemic is believed to be the major factor that led to higher state and national rates in 2021-22 when Mississippi’s chronic absenteeism rate reached a record-high of 28 percent. The U.S. Department of Education released data through Ed Data Express, which showed that chronic absenteeism nationally rose from 16 percent before the pandemic to nearly 30 percent in the 2021-22 school year.
