This story was produced by the Oregon Journalism Project, a nonprofit newsroom covering the state.
After years in the lowest ranks of school attendance in the nation, Oregon schools have shown a bit of progress. An Oregon Journalism Project analysis of recent data shows regular statewide attendance in the first half of the school year rose to 70.6%, an increase of 3 percentage points over the previous year.
Even so, nearly a third of Oregon students were still chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 10% of school days, or about two days a month.
The state’s attendance has ranked among the nation’s worst for the past decade, according to FutureEd, a policy think tank at Georgetown University. For the 2024–25 school year, for example, only Alaska and the District of Columbia had worse rates of chronic absenteeism. Oregon’s recent 33.5% far surpassed the national average of 22%.
Historically, the Oregon Department of Education hasn’t shared attendance reports until months after the school year ends. (Rhode Island, on the other hand, tracks attendance daily and shares results on a dashboard, allowing users to track chronic absenteeism much as investors follow key economic indicators.)
To set a higher standard of transparency, OJP obtained 2025–26 attendance data via public records requests to create a first-of-its-kind searchable database.
With this tracker, Oregonians can see how consistently students attended school from August to December 2025 and compare those rates to the year before. You can search by school name or sort by enrollment, county, or change in attendance rate.
The following data visualization was designed for desktop. On mobile, we recommend turning your phone sideways for the best experience.
Regular school attendance, defined as attending 90% or more of school days, is paramount to Oregon’s academic success–especially for early literacy. Oregon’s fourth grade reading scores rank last in the nation, adjusted for demographics, according to an Urban Institute analysis.
In addition to the tracker, OJP also analyzed underlying data behind the attendance rates and emerged with several findings.