20% of Students Absent on 2nd Day of School in DC

About 20 percent of students enrolled in D.C. public schools were absent on the second day of class this week, according to attendance records provided by school system officials. Records show that about 10,000 of the 51,000 students enrolled Tuesday did not report to classes.

Police picked up one truant on Monday and nine truants on Tuesday. "Ten is high," said Assistant Police Chief Bigelow, "My expectation is that there shouldn't be any."


Michelle Rhee, the newly appointed chancellor, should focus her efforts on eliminating absenteeism- it's impossible to reform the system at large if students don't even show up.