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More than one in five students missed more than 15 days of school in 2024, nearly double the rate in 2019. The rate missing six to 15 days climbed to 42%, six points higher than in 2019.

“A crisis is building,� said Rep. Will Wade, R-Dawsonville, a member of the committee.

Wade and fellow lawmakers heard that reasons as obvious as uncorrected vision and illness are driving absenteeism.

“Asthma is the leading cause,â€� said Garry McGiboney, a former state ÐÔÊӽ紫ý of Education official, the first expert to testify. He said diabetes is also a big driver.

“If you look deeper into that, one of the reasons why is because itÐÔÊӽ紫ý difficult for school systems to implement an asthma or diabetes management plan, especially if they don’t have a school nurse.â€�

McGiboney led a volunteer panel that studied absenteeism for the group Get Georgia Reading. Their resulting report published in June said children with asthma were twice as likely to miss school and cited an American Lung Association report that children with asthma missed 8.3 million school days nationwide.

Justin Hill, a deputy state school superintendent, said illness is a top driver of absenteeism but that weather, family emergencies and vacations also contribute. High school students who skip school often cite fatigue, he said.

Carol Lewis, president and CEO of the group Communities in Schools, a non-profit with the mission of keeping kids in school, said many high school students are tired because they are helping to care for siblings or holding down jobs to help pay family bills.

She said lack of mental health services is a barrier, noting that many chronically absent students lost family members during the pandemic. Basic needs are a problem too, she added, such as clean clothes, feminine hygiene products, food, housing and internet service.

McGiboney recommended that the state enforce a law requiring the chief superior court judge in each county to form a multi-agency student attendance committee. Those committees can be effective, but not all counties have one, he said.

Wade, Gov. Brian KempÐÔÊӽ紫ý House floor leader, said some schools don’t have a nurse and asked if getting one into every school would help. McGiboney responded that it would be one of the most important things the state could do.

The committee will meet two more times, with the next hearing scheduled for Sept. 22 at the Capitol.