Smithfield Schools Rate Among Lowest in Absenteeism

No Smithfield school had a rate of more than 10 percent in what the state Department of Education terms "chronic absenteeism," meaning students who miss more than 18 days of the school year.

WPRI Channel 12 recently reported that 17 percent of all students in Rhode Island were classified as chronically absent during the 2011-12 school year, with four Providence high schools reporting more than 50 percent of students on the list.

Locally, Smithfield High School recorded 8.49 percent chronic absenteeism, followed by Raymond LaPerche Elementary with 5.56 percent, and Vincent Gallagher Middle School wth 5.48 percent.

The three other elementary schools all had fewer than 3 percent of their students in the chronically absent category — William Windsor School [2.73], Old County Road School [2.67], and Anna McCabe [1.12].

See the complete results here.

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