Attendance data released last week by the Colorado Department of Education shows truancy and chronic absenteeism at the Aspen and Roaring Fork school districts trended downward in the 2024-2025 academic year.
Chronic absenteeism decreased 6.7% in the ASD, from 43.1% during the 2023-2024 academic year to 36.4% during the most recent academic year. In the RFSD, chronic absenteeism decreased 1% from 26.8% to 25.5%.
Chronic absenteeism in Colorado is considered when a student misses 10% or more days in a school year. It has grown nationally since the pandemic, and is most common in communities with students in low-income families, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Attendance increased slightly at ASD during the most recent academic year, according to CDE data. The attendance rate grew from 89.8% during the 2023-24 academic year to 91% in the most recent school year at ASD. The attendance rate remained relatively stable at RFSD: In 2023-24 the attendance rate was 92% and in 2024-25 it was 92.2%.
Truancy decreased slightly at RFSD during the most recent academic year, from 4.1% in 2023-24 to 3.8% in 2024-25. Truancy at ASD remained at 3% during the two most recent academic years.
During the 2023-24 school year, ASD was among the top 15 school districts in chronic absenteeism rates out of almost 200 districts in the state. But it was among the lowest in the state for its truancy rate — the amount of unexcused absences a student racks up, an indicator of a student missing out on school for reasons other than extracurriculars. In 2924-25, ASD was 30th in the state in terms of chronic absenteeism.
Last year, ASD school board members were concerned the data didn't show a full picture of what the absences meant at the district, especially since the state considers excused absences in its chronic absenteeism counts. At ASD, about 85% of students missing school are participating in athletics, including school-sponsored athletics, club sports games or Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club activities, Superintendent Tharyn Mulberry said last year.
ASD school board President Christa Gieszl said the board has taken steps in the past year to discourage unexcused absences. Gieszl had not yet seen the data when reached Friday, but said the board is planning to explore more strict policies this year to ensure students are missing as little instructional time as possible.
“We know that being in class is one of the best ways to guarantee the highest academic outcomes,” Gieszl said. “We’re trying to make sure we’re not overly punitive but punitive enough so that students remain in class.”
At Aspen High School, students will receive a withdraw/fail if they do not attend 85% of their scheduled classes. For a semester course, students cannot have more than seven days of absences, excused, unexcused or pre-arranged due to travel. It does not include sports or school-sanctioned extracurricular activities.
Once students reach 10 unexcused absences, proceedings are initiated to enforce compulsory attendance.
In the current academic year, the high school is rolling out a new attendance policy that will impact eligibility for athletics, choir and band concerts, theater performances, field trips and other extracurricular activities. Once a student has four tardies in a week they are ineligible, and once a student has two unexcused absences in a week they are ineligible. Students won’t start being held ineligible until late September.
Chronic absenteeism at ASD was highest among 12th-grade students during the 2024-25 academic year. About 66% of seniors at Aspen High School were considered chronically absent, followed by juniors at 50%, sophomores at 46% and freshmen at 27%.
About 41% of eighth-grade students at Aspen Middle School were chronically absent, 30% of seventh-grade students were chronically absent, 44% of sixth-graders were chronically absent and about 32% of fifth-graders were chronically absent.
All grades at Aspen Elementary School had chronic absenteeism rates below 30%.
The average statewide attendance rate was 91.4% and chronic absenteeism was 28.4%, according to the recently released CDE data. The average truancy rate was 3.6%.
