Chronic absence fell in 15 of 24 South Coast school districts last school year
Statewide, 17.1% of students were chronically absent in 2025-26, down from 18.8% the year before and 19.7% two years ago. Eight South Coast districts went up, led by Somerset Berkley Regional, and Somerset held even.
SOUTH COAST Fewer students missed a tenth or more of the school year in 2025-26 than the year before in 15 of the 24 public school districts based on the South Coast, end-of-year attendance figures from the state education department show. Eight districts went up, and Somerset held at 9.4%.
Statewide, 17.1% of students were chronically absent last school year, down from 18.8% in 2024-25 and 19.7% in 2023-24. The state counted 12.9% in 2018-19, the last full school year before the pandemic. The state last updated the figures Sept. 22.
A student counts as chronically absent after missing at least 10% of the days enrolled in a school. The state gives the example of a student enrolled for 50 days who missed five. The count covers prekindergarten through grade 12 and leaves out students enrolled fewer than 20 days.
Where it fell
Marion had the largest one-year drop, to 11.8% from 15.8%. Wareham went to 18.1% from 21.8%, New Bedford to 21.3% from 24.2%, Dighton-Rehoboth to 12.0% from 14.4% and Dartmouth to 11.2% from 13.4%. Freetown-Lakeville and Swansea each came down 1.9 points, to 9.9% and 13.9%.
Over two years, New Bedford posted the biggest improvement on the South Coast: its rate fell 10.8 points from 32.1% in 2023-24, and it is now within half a point of the 20.8% it reported in 2018-19. Rochester was down 5.3 points over the same two years, to 6.3%, the lowest rate of any South Coast district. Fall River, Somerset and Wareham were each down at least 3.5 points from 2023-24.
Taunton fell to 22.5% from 23.8%, Old Colony to 7.4% from 8.8%, and Fall River edged down to 26.9% from 27.2%. Old Rochester Regional, Berkley, Rochester, Diman and Seekonk each moved down by less than a point.
Where it rose
Somerset Berkley Regional went up the most, to 18.3% from 14.8%, though it remained below the 21.6% it reported two years ago. Acushnet rose to 11.5% from 9.6% and Westport to 16.7% from 15.2%. Greater New Bedford Voc-Tech went to 9.3% from 8.1% and Bristol-Plymouth to 9.8% from 8.8%. Mattapoisett, Fairhaven and Bristol County Agricultural each rose by half a point or less.
Seven districts were above the 17.1% state rate: Fall River, Taunton, New Bedford, Old Rochester Regional, Somerset Berkley Regional, Wareham and Fairhaven, the closest to it at 17.7%. Four of the five regional vocational and agricultural high schools were under 10%, with Old Colony lowest at 7.4%. Bristol County Agricultural was at 15.2%.
Days missed
The state also reports a narrower group of students who missed at least 20% of their enrolled days, which came to 4.8% statewide. On the South Coast it was highest in Fall River at 8.7%, followed by Taunton at 7.0%, Somerset Berkley Regional at 6.5% and New Bedford at 6.4%, and lowest in Somerset at 0.9%.
The average student statewide missed 11.3 days last school year. Among South Coast districts the average ran from 7.6 days at Greater New Bedford Voc-Tech to 14.0 days in Fall River. Statewide, 41.0% of students missed 10 or more days, down from 44.4% the year before.
| District | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | Average days absent, 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acushnet | 9.2% | 9.6% | 11.5% | 9.0 |
| Berkley | 8.8% | 11.1% | 10.6% | 8.7 |
| Bristol County Agricultural | 16.9% | 15.1% | 15.2% | 10.2 |
| Bristol-Plymouth Regional Vocational Technical | 12.7% | 8.8% | 9.8% | 8.4 |
| Dartmouth | 13.9% | 13.4% | 11.2% | 9.4 |
| Dighton-Rehoboth | 13.2% | 14.4% | 12.0% | 9.7 |
| Fairhaven | 15.6% | 17.3% | 17.7% | 11.1 |
| Fall River | 30.4% | 27.2% | 26.9% | 14.0 |
| Freetown-Lakeville | 11.8% | 11.8% | 9.9% | 8.9 |
| Greater Fall River Regional Vocational Technical (Diman) | 8.6% | 8.8% | 8.6% | 8.2 |
| Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical | 8.0% | 8.1% | 9.3% | 7.6 |
| Marion | 14.8% | 15.8% | 11.8% | 9.4 |
| Mattapoisett | 10.2% | 8.9% | 9.4% | 8.0 |
| New Bedford | 32.1% | 24.2% | 21.3% | 12.5 |
| Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical | 9.2% | 8.8% | 7.4% | 7.8 |
| Old Rochester Regional | 19.6% | 21.8% | 21.2% | 11.9 |
| Rochester | 11.6% | 6.8% | 6.3% | 7.7 |
| Seekonk | 11.2% | 10.6% | 10.5% | 8.8 |
| Somerset | 12.9% | 9.4% | 9.4% | 8.8 |
| Somerset Berkley Regional | 21.6% | 14.8% | 18.3% | 12.5 |
| Swansea | 17.1% | 15.8% | 13.9% | 10.6 |
| Taunton | 23.3% | 23.8% | 22.5% | 12.8 |
| Wareham | 22.1% | 21.8% | 18.1% | 10.4 |
| Westport | 13.8% | 15.2% | 16.7% | 11.1 |
| Massachusetts (all districts) | 19.7% | 18.8% | 17.1% | 11.3 |
The table covers the 19 town and regional districts that serve Acushnet, Berkley, Dartmouth, Dighton, Fairhaven, Fall River, Freetown, Lakeville, Marion, Mattapoisett, New Bedford, Rehoboth, Rochester, Seekonk, Somerset, Swansea, Taunton, Wareham and Westport, plus the five regional vocational and agricultural high schools based in the region. Upper Cape Cod Regional Vocational Technical, in Bourne, also counts Marion and Wareham among its member towns and is not in the count; its rate rose to 24.3% from 22.3%. Charter schools report separately and are not included.
Unexcused absences
The state also counts students with more than nine unexcused absences, a figure that depends on how each district defines an unexcused absence. Statewide it was 21.3% in 2025-26. Somerset Berkley Regional went to 28.2% from 39.4%, and Taunton, Fall River and New Bedford were each between 37.0% and 37.8%.
Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.
Notes
Every number comes from the state education department's Student Attendance report for the 2025-26, 2024-25, 2023-24 and 2018-19 school years, district level, all students, every definition from the department's own notes on that data, and Upper Cape Cod Regional Vocational Technical's member towns from the department's profile of that district, all listed below. We read them on Oct. 31. We worked out the one-year and two-year changes and the count of districts that went up or down ourselves from the state's figures. We checked the Sept. 22 update date against the state's own page.
Corrections
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Sources (6)
- Student Attendance report, district level, 2025-26 (End of year), All StudentsMassachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, School and District Profiles. Attendance rate, average absences, absent 10 or more days, chronically absent 10% and 20% or more, unexcused over nine days for every district and the state total. Page says the data was last updated Sept. 22, 2026. Read Oct. 31, 2026.
- Student Attendance report, district level, 2024-25 (End of year), All StudentsSame report, prior school year. Read Oct. 31, 2026.
- Student Attendance report, district level, 2023-24 (End of year), All StudentsSame report, two school years back. Read Oct. 31, 2026.
- Student Attendance report, district level, 2018-19, All StudentsSame report, the 2018-19 school year (chronically absent 10% or more). Read Oct. 31, 2026.
- Upper Cape Cod Regional Vocational Technical: Relationships/MembershipSchool and District Profiles. Lists Bourne, Falmouth, Marion, Sandwich and Wareham as the vocational regional member towns. Read Oct. 31, 2026.
- About the Data: Students (attendance definitions)School and District Profiles. Definitions of chronically absent (10% or more of days in membership, the 50 days and five days example, grades PK to 12 with at least 20 days in membership) and of unexcused absences over nine days (local district definition). Read Oct. 31, 2026.