D.C. public schools are showing “forward momentum,” with an increase in enrollment, improved teacher retention and improvements in student performance, according to a new report from the D.C. Policy Center. But one of the authors of the report told WTOP the figures on chronic absenteeism are an area of concern.
The local think tank’s 2024-25 “State of D.C. Schools” report showed some recovery to prepandemic levels in performance in English Language Arts, with 38% of students meeting or exceeding expectations. That’s an increase of 4% points.
The report also documented a 4% gain in math, but the number of students meeting or exceeding standards remained at prepandemic levels, just 26%.
Chelsea Coffin, deputy director of the center and one of the authors of the report, said of the gains, “D.C. has been making a lot of investments over time that are starting to pay off,” but she acknowledged the need for continued improvement.
The efforts to boost student performance, she said, are “definitely not a sprint.”
Coffin said the gains in English instruction come in part as a result of the work of a literacy task force, professional development and earlier intervention when it’s clear a student may be struggling.
D.C. Public Schools is taking a similar tack when it comes to math instruction, Coffin said, “to really move the needle on math.”
“D.C. also made a system-level investment in high impact tutoring, using a lot of federal relief dollars from the pandemic,” Coffin said. “It paid off so much that D.C. absorbs that cost and made it a priority to use local dollars to fund high impact tutoring, using that as the main source of funding.”
Coffin called absenteeism a “persistent engagement challenge,” with 40% of the school population missing 10% of the school system’s instructional days.
She said the reasons that lead to chronic absenteeism vary. Sometimes, she said, it’s the school environment that may not feel welcoming or safe for a student. There can also be what she called “barriers to arrival,” where students may not feel safe on their route to school or may struggle to access transportation.
“It can be related to household factors. Do you need to care for a younger child in your house, who’s staying home?” she said.
Some of the data in the report, Coffin said, comes from the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent and showed another troublesome data point. According to what they found, 82% of students have the same attendance behaviors from one year to the next. So a student who is chronically absent one year is likely to continue to miss school as they move through the school system.
Coffin said one thing the report found was a “huge spike postpandemic in the eighth graders who were chronically absent.” That’s especially notable, she said, given the fact that “eighth grade and middle school in general is definitely a pivotal time” when students’ attitudes about school become more definite.
When it comes to college and career-readiness, Coffin said the findings were mixed, with graduation rates at a 10-year high of 79% but the SAT College and Career Ready Benchmark decreasing to 16%.
The big takeaway, Coffin said, is that there has been a stabilization after the pandemic, and there’s forward momentum in the critical learning areas of English and math.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
© 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
