Among the variety of topics that are keystones for the promotion of mental
health in schools, an issue that may go unaddressed-perhaps because it seems so
elementary-is this: before student mental health can be supported in school, students
must be in school. Evidence of failure to get students in school is seen not only in daily
attendance rates, but is reflected in other sources of evidence including the surprisingly
low high school graduation rates and in truancy data. Absenteeism is among the most
serious threats impacting school success and has been shown to be associated with a
variety of factors such as the school environment, home environment, and individual
student characteristics. The goal of this chapter is to explicate the influences impacting
attendance such that educators can effectively plan for success in this most basic
requirement for promoting mental health in schools.
Keywords: Absenteeism, drop out, graduation, school refusers, truancy, school
mental health, high school, minorities and school, school attendance, school
environment, home environment, IQ and absenteeism, mental health and
absenteeism, school refusal, school reorganization, community partnerships.
