The Latest Stories For You From Salem Reporter

Good morning, Salem.

The year before the Covid pandemic hit, local school district leaders had an urgent problem.

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Too many students were missing too many days of school, they said. Kids needed to be in class regularly so they didn’t miss out on valuable lessons.

Concerns over attendance prompted a districtwide campaign, with bumper stickers, outreach to businesses that employed teens and focus groups.

Then, 79% of students were in class regularly.

Now, it’s just 57% – and that comes after several years of rebuilding from an even deeper pandemic drop.

That’s according to new state data released Thursday, which shows persistent attendance challenges both in Salem and across the state. Our story below explores in more detail what’s happening in local schools – and what educators are trying to do about it.

We’ll take a deeper look at these numbers in the coming days and weeks, including highlighting what’s working in schools posting improvements.

Here’s some of today’s news. Head to our website anytime for the latest in Salem.

www.salemreporter.com

Thousands of Salem students are still missing too much school, state data shows

New state data released Thursday shows more than four in 10 Salem-Keizer student were chronically absent from school last year – a far higher share than the state average.

www.salemreporter.com

5 things to do in Salem this week: Instrument petting zoo, holiday markets, drive-thru lights show

Salem is turning on the holiday lights this Friday, with a drive-thru light show opening at the fairgrounds. Other events include a family concert with a pre-show ‘instrument petting zoo,’…

www.salemreporter.com

City leaders get to work charting Salem’s course ahead for the next five years

Salem city councilors held a work session on Monday night to begin setting goals and priorities, identifying strengths and weaknesses, and developing a mission statement and vision that will guide…

Here’s some of today’s news. Catch our latest deadlines on our website here.

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SEE LOCAL EVENTS: Our new events calendar lets you browse what’s happening in Salem – completely free. Want to submit an upcoming event? You can do that here.

TIP US TO NEWS: We welcome your tips about possible Salem stories – a community event, a local resident doing something extraordinary, a government action that needs investigating. Send your information, ideas or questions by email to our editor, Les Zaitz, at [email protected].

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Thousands of Salem students are still missing too much school, state data shows

5 things to do in Salem this week: Instrument petting zoo, holiday markets, drive-thru lights show

City leaders get to work charting Salem’s course ahead for the next five years

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