A MIXED METHODS CASE STUDY OF SCHOOL LEADERS’ UNDERSTANDING OF AND RESPONSE TO CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM IN A RURAL SCHOOL DISTRICT

The COVID-19 pandemic drastically increased chronic absenteeism nationwide. Although rates have improved slightly, it continues to disproportionately affect students of color, students with disabilities, and those in rural communities. While research has examined causes and effects of absenteeism, less is known about how school leaders interpret and respond. This sequential explanatory mixed methods collective case study examines how elementary school leaders’ perceptions of chronic absenteeism and their interventions align with documented absence reasons in a rural district. Quantitative analysis of student-level data identifies absenteeism patterns, while document analysis examines district MTSS-guided attendance intervention expectations. Focus groups with school attendance committees explore how leaders interpret guidance and justify interventions. Guided by a researcher-designed conceptual framework, the study examines how macrosystem perceptions and microsystem organizational conditions interact with exosystem policy to shape school leaders’ responses. Findings reveal contextual influences of both convergence and misalignment between leader beliefs, district protocols, and family-reported absence reasons, highlighting opportunities for context-responsive interventions and informing rural attendance policy.