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As educators nationwide grapple with stubbornly high levels of student absences since the pandemic drove schools into disarray five years ago, Oklahoma prosecutor Erik Johnson says he has the solution. 

This week, I offer a look at chronic absenteeism鈥檚 persistence long after COVID shuttered classrooms, plunged families into poverty and led to the deaths of more than 1 million Americans. Lawmakers nationwide have proposed dozens of bills this year designed to curtail student absences 鈥� with radically different approaches.

While a proposal in Hawaii would reward kids鈥� good attendance with ice cream, new laws in Indiana, West Virginia and Iowa impose fines and jail time for parents who can鈥檛 compel their children to attend class regularly. In Oklahoma, where Johnson has ushered in a new era of truancy crackdowns, state lawmakers say parents 鈥� not principals and teachers 鈥� should be held accountable for students鈥� repeat absences.

鈥淲e prosecute everything from murders to rape to financial crimes, but in my view, the ones that cause the most societal harm is when people do harm to children, either child neglect, child physical abuse, child sexual abuse, domestic violence in homes, and then you can add truancy to the list,鈥� Johnson told me this week. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 not as bad, in my opinion, as beating a child, but it’s on the spectrum because you鈥檙e not putting that child in a position to be successful,鈥� continued Johnson, who has dubbed 2025 the 鈥淵ear of the Child.鈥�

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In the news

Books are not a crime 鈥� yet: Under proposed Texas legislation, teachers could soon face jail sentences for teaching classic literary works with sexual content, including The Catcher in the Rye and (unironically?) Brave New World. | 

Mass layoffs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services this week could have devastating consequences for the health and well-being of low-income children. | 

Ten days or else: The Education Department demanded Thursday that states certify in writing within the next 10 days that K-12 schools are complying with its interpretation of civil rights laws, namely eliminating any diversity, equity and inclusion programs, or else risk losing their federal funding. | 

A Texas teen was kneed in the face by a school cop: Now, with steep cuts to the Education Department鈥檚 Office for Civil Rights, her case is one of thousands that have been left to languish. | 

Students鈥� right to privacy versus parents鈥� right to know: The Trump administration has opened an investigation into a California law designed to protect transgender students from being outed to their parents, alleging violations of the federal student privacy law. | 

• A similar investigation has been opened against officials in Maine, where the feds claim district policies to protect students鈥� privacy come at the expense of parents鈥� right to information. | 
  
• 鈥淧arents are the most natural protectors of their children,鈥� Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement after a similar federal investigation was launched against Virginia educators. 鈥淵et many states and school districts have enacted policies that imply students need protection from their parents.鈥� | 
  
• A little context: In a recent survey, more than 92% of parents said they were supportive of their child鈥檚 transgender identity. | 

The Student Press Law Center joined a coalition of free speech and journalism organizations in denouncing the recent ICE detention of Tufts University international student Rumeysa Ozturk over opinions she expressed in an op-ed in the student newspaper. 

• 鈥淪uch a basis for her detention would represent a blatant disregard for the principles of free speech and free press within the First Amendment,鈥� the groups wrote in their letter. | 
  
• The Turkish doctoral candidate is one of several students who鈥檝e been rounded up by immigration officials in recent weeks based on pro-Palestinian comments. | 

Florida lawmakers have a plan to fill the jobs of undocumented workers who are deported: Put kids on the overnight shift. | 

Minority report: Following bipartisan opposition, Georgia lawmakers have given up on efforts to create a statewide student-tracking database designed to identify youth who could commit future acts of violence. | 

A majority of school district programs focused on protecting student data are led by administrators with little training in privacy issues, a new report finds. | 

Washington students鈥� sensitive data was exposed. The culprit? A student surveillance tool. | 

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ICYMI @The74

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Emotional Support

Annie, who lives with 社区黑料 social media guru Christian Skotte, is the cutest regular at Brooklyn鈥檚 Prospect Park. You won鈥檛 convince me otherwise. 

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