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San Diego County schools grappled with persistent absenteeism and dwindling enrollments throughout the past year as they endeavored to recover from the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Similar challenges are expected to persist this year.
The ramifications of the pandemic endure: Chronic absenteeism continues to prevail throughout the county, almost three years post-outbreak; a decline in student enrollments persists within the state’s public education system; and districts are contending with the escalating homelessness crisis in the county.
Educators are now focusing on exploring potential remedies.
Outlined below are four critical education matters to monitor throughout 2024.
Chronic absenteeism
Despite recent progress, state assessments reveal that approximately a quarter of the county’s students experienced chronic absenteeism last year.
Prior to the pandemic, this statistic stood at 11%.
This concerning trend troubles educators who attribute chronic absenteeism—defined as missing 10% or more of instructional days—to various factors such as socioeconomic challenges, school environment, and a lack of engagement. Notably, students of color faced higher rates, with chronic absenteeism surpassing 30% among Black, American Indian, Hispanic, and Pacific Islander students.
Frequent absences also impact school finances as state funding relies on daily student attendance.
To address this issue, the county Office of Education initiated its third San Diego County Improving Chronic Absence Network, aiming to bolster attendance rates. A report on this network revealed a decrease in the number of days students missed class through interventions like “nudge letters,” which informed parents about absences.
Approximately 40% of students in one of the 18 participating schools during the 2021-22 academic year faced chronic absenteeism. However, in the subsequent year, this rate decreased by approximately 9 percentage points.
The third cohort concluded in the spring, and a fourth cohort involving 19 campuses across five school districts commenced in the spring, scheduled to conclude participation in May.
Additionally, officials are actively enlisting more schools to join a new cohort later in the year to address chronic absenteeism concerns.
Student homelessness
San Diego’s escalating homelessness crisis has affected numerous children: State data revealed that over 16,000 homeless students resided in the county during the 2022-23 academic year.
Over the summer, a contentious law came into effect in the city, rendering citywide camping illegal if shelter beds were available. Additionally, the law prohibited camping near schools, parks, transit hubs, and waterways, irrespective of shelter availability.
San Diego Unified, the county’s largest school district, contemplated providing overnight parking for unhoused students and families on vacant district properties. However, this proposal has encountered delays due to funding constraints.
Nevertheless, there are plans in motion. Board member Richard Barrera shared with inewsource in late October that, once funding is secured and a contracted service provider is engaged, “safe parking” at Central Elementary could be established within the subsequent six months.
Moreover, the district aims to transform Central Elementary in City Heights into affordable housing for its employees, students, and their families. Despite intentions to initiate the project, Barrera indicated that groundbreaking might take several years.
Furthermore, the district intends to accommodate roughly 500 employees with affordable housing by redeveloping its headquarters in University Heights on Normal Street. This move is anticipated within the upcoming two years, with plans to relocate its main office to Kearny Mesa, as shared by Barrera.
Enrollment declines
School districts across the county continue to witness a decline in student enrollments.
San Diego Unified, for instance, has experienced a significant drop of 14%, equivalent to over 15,000 students, over the past decade. This decline has led to larger classroom sizes and, as reported by the San Diego Union-Tribune in October, some teachers being reassigned well into the academic year. Superintendent Lamont Jackson acknowledged parents’ concerns regarding the impact of these late reassignments on students’ learning and emotional well-being, pledging to enhance the process in the following year.
Several factors contribute to this enrollment trend, including parents’ increasing preference for charter schools and homeschooling over public education. State data indicates a growth of approximately 30% in charter school enrollments in the county over the last decade.
Additionally, families are opting to relocate from San Diego to more affordable areas, contributing to this decline.
The decline in enrollment at South Bay Union is particularly drastic, prompting considerations for potential school closures. Serving students in San Ysidro, Imperial Beach, and south San Diego, the pre-K-8 district, which had approximately 6,000 students in 2011, is projected to have around 3,200 by 2025—an estimated loss of nearly half of its students.
Community schools
School districts, including San Diego Unified, are banking on the transformation of campuses into community schools to help improve attendance rates.
These community schools operate by partnering with local organizations to offer tailored services based on the specific needs of students and their families.
San Diego Unified initiated its initial set of five community schools in 2022, expanding to ten additional campuses—comprising six elementary schools, one middle school, and three high schools—from the beginning of 2023.
Although the concept of community schools existed about 50 years ago in the Chula Vista Elementary School District, it was only during this school year that the district welcomed its first two community schools.
Services provided at each campus can vary, customized to meet the community’s requirements. These services encompass free food access, healthcare provisions, counseling, dental services, tutoring, after-school programs, and parenting education.
The state has allocated $4 billion to convert numerous public schools into community schools. Research indicates that such models positively impact graduation rates, academic advancement, attendance, and a reduction in disciplinary incidents.
However, concerns loom regarding San Diego Unified’s financial sustainability for its expanding model beyond state funding. There’s also uncertainty about whether this year’s data will reflect any notable differences.
The district is mandated to present a funding plan to the state by the end of the 2024-25 academic year, while the state contends with a historic deficit of $68 billion.
Several community schools have conducted assessments to gauge the needs of their student and family populations.
For instance, findings from Chollas Mead Elementary families underscored a necessity for transportation and extracurricular activities. Karina Pina-Armas, the site’s community schools coordinator, revealed that some parents face challenges in transporting their children to the Chollas View school due to a lack of access to a car. Students expressed an interest in soccer, an after-school sports program currently unavailable at many elementary schools in the district.
Efforts are underway at Chollas Mead to address these needs by planning to provide families with bus passes in collaboration with the San Diego Association of Governments, the regional transportation planning agency. Additionally, the school aims to introduce after-school soccer sessions starting in February, as highlighted by Pina-Armas.
