To help schools better understand where they can have the most impact on increasing student attendance and achievement, the study’s authors said they are planning another phase of research to examine a broad range of school, neighborhood and individual factors affecting absenteeism. 

Middle and high school attendance still matters enormously post-COVID, and schools can do a lot to improve it, according to a new report from the University of Chicago’s Consortium on School Research. 

The number of middle school and high school students in Chicago missing an astronomical 18 days or more of school shot up during the pandemic and has remained stubbornly high, but a new study finds that some city schools are more successful than others in getting teens to show up. 

The University of Chicago’s Consortium on School Research finds students attend more when they feel safe, have friends at their school and have strong relationships with teachers...

Key Findings 

• Absenteeism increased considerably in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic:
  • More students had very high absence rates, and fewer students had low absence rates.
• Students’ academic achievement is still strongly related to their attendance.
  • Attendance matters as much as ever: students with lower attendance rates have lower grades and test scores.
• Schools’ absence rates varied considerably, including among schools serving similar students from similar neighborhoods.
• School climate is strongly associated with

A bachelor’s degree is the best pathway to a good job in Illinois — and while alternative pathways can lead to good jobs, they are more inequitable, according to a new report from the Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative and the UChicago Consortium on School Research. 

Some non-college pathways also led to good jobs, such as construction and agriculture, but they heavily favored white and Latino men...

La mayoría de las veces, las agendas política, de seguridad y de finanzas terminan acaparando la atención mediática y de la opinión pública sobre otras cuestiones de igual trascendencia como lo es la educación. Este tema llena los titulares de cuando en cuando, especialmente durante los llamados estudiantiles y del magisterio a la movilización social, en la que reclaman justamente más recursos y mejor infraestructura.

The UChicago Consortium on School Research has been helping Chicago Public Schools use data to improve for decades. Director Elaine Allensworth's new book shows schools how to pick metrics that matter...

Our December 2025 newsletter features:

Emanda is a Research Assistant for UChicago Consortium who strives to create impact through organizing and translating data insights. Her previous experiences include working as a student data scientist for the Data Science Institute and Inclusive Development International where she contributed to PalmWatch, a data transparency tool aimed at exposing violations in the palm oil supply chain. She has also worked as a Data Strategy Intern for Driving Forward, a non-profit organization that provides resources to first-generation and under-resourced college students.