A new report from the Connecticut Department of Education states that students show up to school more and do better on tests.
Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker met with representatives of school districts from across the state to discuss data from the 2024-2025 student assessment. The annual report revealed that chronic absenteeism has improved and statewide test scores have moved “closer to pre-pandemic levels”.
"We have gone from 117,000 students who were chronically absent in the 2021-22 school year, to now 83,000 in 2025. It means about 34,000 students are back in the classroom, more regularly, where they belong."
Russell-Tucker said part of the improvement in attendance can be attributed to school districts’ increased use of the home visitation program. The Learner Engagement and Attendance Program (LEAP), a statewide program launched in 2021 to combat the chronic absenteeism following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The LEAP model works by training educators to conduct home visits to connect with families and students. Russell-Tucker said the data showed that student attendance improved by double digits, six months after a visit. She said it also helped educators adjust in real time.
“In our chronic absence data, for example, we saw a spike in those numbers in February. And when we say that we were able to work with you all, and all of us together as a community to lean in and to really ramp up our effective practices,” Russell-Tucker said.
The state tested 3rd to 8th-grade students in English language arts (ELA), math, and science through Smart Balance assessments. Test scores from the SATs were used to evaluate students’ work in grade 11 and the Next Generation Science Standards Assessment statewide.
Ajit Gopalakrishnan, the department's chief performance officer, said the report is a performance index that aggregates student achievement from all assessments within a subject area. He noted that academic performance improvements have yet to surpass pre-pandemic levels, but improvement can be seen across the board.
“When we see broad improvement on a measure like the performance index, which is like pulling together everything. When we see that happening, not just for every student but for every student group,” Gopalakrishnan said. “That’s now a sign that our collective efforts are really making a difference.”
