Schools get billions more. Kids drop out anyway

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon Foundation,

Absenteeism that started with the Covid-19 pandemic has morphed into a crisis with nearly half of all Oregon students listed as chronically absent in a newly released 2024 Kids County Data Book report. The data book, which evaluates the well-being of children throughout all 50 states, ranked Oregon children at 12^th in terms of health, 16^th with regard to family and community, and 29^th on economic well-being. But the state hovers near the bottom in the nation at 43^rd in education, with absenteeism playing a large role in that number. Rates have soared since the 2020 pandemic with 42 percent of students listed as chronically absent in 2022, with the percentage in underserved communities of color at 45 percent. The study attributed the high absenteeism to failures in the education system and lack of support for families needing transportation, stable housing, and food.

This has happened as Oregon schools have received billions in brand new funding sources (CAT tax, marijuana tax, new lottery diversions, corporate kicker diversions) that did not exist a dozen years ago.