Louisiana
Louisiana schools have an absenteeism problem. The state has a new plan to fix it.
As the number of Louisiana students who frequently miss school grows, the state Department of Education has unveiled a new strategy for bringing them back.
The new guidelines released this week, called “The Power of Presence,” focus on district and community-level prevention and intervention efforts, rather than punitive measures, to improve attendance. They come as Louisiana’s absenteeism rate has risen the past two school years.
The 31-page guidebook also offers standard definitions of chronic absenteeism, which is when students miss 10% or more of a school year, and truancy to create consistency across school districts. It also emphasizes consistent data collection and reporting so that districts can better track at-risk students.
Some suggested interventions to promote student wellbeing and boost attendance include providing weekend food bags for students dealing with food insecurity, creating a closet with spare clothes for children whose families struggle to afford school uniforms, and encouraging students to join after-school activities.
While schools aren’t required to adopt the strategies, the framework is intended to give districts evidence-based solutions to combat poor attendance, which research has linked to numerous negative outcomes, including lower test scores, poor grades and a higher likelihood of becoming involved in the criminal justice system, education leaders said.
“We are facing a real and urgent challenge,” Sharon Clark, a member of the state education board, said during an annual teacher conference in New Orleans organized by the state education department. “Students are missing too much school, and we are feeling the impact.”
Even as Louisiana climbs in national education rankings, it was one of just five states out of 36 that have released data where absenteeism rates grew during the 2023-24 school year, according to information compiled by FutureEd, a Georgetown University think tank. Last year, nearly 1 in 4 Louisiana students was classified as chronically absent, up three percentage points from the previous year, state data shows.
“Louisiana is the only state in the country where the average student has made” a full academic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic, state Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley said. “But that growth has been minimized by attendance and truancy issues.”
Louisiana’s goal is to reduce absenteeism by 2% annually, officials said. If it achieves that goal, nearly 45,000 fewer children will be considered chronically absent by the 2027-28 school year.
While the framework gives districts flexibility to tailor strategies to their needs, it includes a handful of “universal elements” each school system’s attendance plan should include. Those key strategies include creating partnerships with community organizations, such as churches and local government agencies; keeping families engaged in their children’s education; and forming attendance teams at the school and district level that help track data and coordinate efforts
The guidelines draw on findings from a program piloted by Baker High School two years ago that aimed to drive down absenteeism using simple strategies, such as sending letters home when students rack up absences and checking in with at-risk students to find out why they’re missing school and discuss solutions. After one year, the district saw its share of chronically absent students fall 13 percentage points, to 37%.
While many districts already employ some of the methods the state is encouraging, the new guidelines are the most comprehensive set to date and should lead to more uniformity across the state, said Misty Davis, executive director of attendance strategy at the state education department.
By asking every district to use the same language when talking about attendance, it makes it easier for the state to collect and analyze submitted data, Davis explained. For example, the guidelines make clear when schools should label student absences as excused or unexcused in data systems, she said.
State education department staffers will work with districts that continue to struggle with attendance and help them adopt some of the suggested strategies, officials said.
“This is getting everybody on the same page,” Davis said, “about how we do it and what it looks and sounds like.”
The 2025 Louisiana high school football season continued on Friday, and High School On SI has a list of final scores from this weekend.
Louisiana High School Football Scores, Results & Live Updates (LHSAA) – November 14, 2025
Acadiana 29, Carencro 21
Amite 59, Cohen 20
Archbishop Rummel 24, Holy Cross 0
Barbe 49, Northwood 21
Belaire 42, Patrick Taylor Science & Tech Academy 31
Brother Martin 17, Liberty 16
Brusly 42, Albany 6
Catholic – N.I. 52, Glen Oaks 0
Cecilia 56, Carroll 7
Central 52, Dutchtown 24
Church Point 42, North Webster 7
De La Salle 45, Episcopal 14
Delta Charter 28, St. Martin’s Episcopal 15
DeRidder 36, Eunice 15
Donaldsonville 18, Westlake 0
East Ascension 57, West Ouachita 16
East Feliciana 44, Delcambre 6
Elton 36, LaSalle 14
Erath 56, Bogalusa 0
Ferriday 58, Northeast 0
Franklinton 51, Rayne 14
Franklin Parish 62, Abbeville 6
Grand Lake 61, Montgomery 18
Hahnville 52, Slidell 39
Hammond 61, Captain Shreve 21
Haynes Academy 41, Abramson 0
Holy Savior Menard 47, Thomas Jefferson 0
Homer 21, Franklin 20
Jennings 56, St. Martinville 18
Jesuit 46, McDonogh 35 7
Jonesboro-Hodge 44, North Central 20
Kaplan 34, Pine 18
Kennedy 55, Fredrick Douglass 0
Kentwood 28, Vermilion Catholic 13
Leesville 52, Kenner Discovery 7
Logansport 44, Varnado 0
Loreauville 28, Ville Platte 6
Lutcher 49, Iota 7
Mandeville 48, Thibodaux 27
Mansfield 42, Winnfield 12
Many 35, Red River 27
Marksville 48, Patterson 14
Metairie Park Country Day 56, Beekman 15
North Iberville 53, Arcadia 6
Northlake Christian 59, St. Louis Catholic 20
Northwest 45, South Terrebonne 0
Oak Grove 47, Port Allen 0
Opelousas 13, Pearl River 0
Opelousas Catholic 35, Ascension Christian 7
Ouachita Parish 24, St. Amant 21
Parkview Baptist 42, D’Arbonne Woods 28
Parkway 51, Covington 30
Plaquemine 55, Livonia 0
Richwood 40, Caldwell Parish 20
Slaughter Community Charter 21, Pope John Paul II 17
Southside 52, Prairieville 14
St. Edmund 62, Lincoln Prep 18
St. Frederick 49, Cedar Creek 6
St. Helena College and Career Academy 58, Avoyelles 26
St. Michael 35, Loranger 12
St. Paul’s 56, Pineville 7
St. Thomas More 41, Lafayette 7
Terrebonne 27, Natchitoches Central 24
Union Parish 41, Rayville 18
Vinton 28, DeQuincy 0
Washington 22, Istrouma 14
Welsh 38, Lake Arthur 23
West Feliciana 49, Bossier 6
West Monroe 49, South Lafourche 21
West St. John 50, General Trass 6
West St. Mary 28, Basile 22
Westgate 49, Airline 14
Westminster Christian Academy – Lafayette 26, Sacred Heart 21
Wossman 35, Minden 14
Zachary 48, Salmen 15
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Just where is that damn board?
Nobody knows. It’s a Louisiana mystery. An ancient cypress plank, 20 feet long and six wide, has gone missing. It couldn’t have been an easy heist. The thing is huge, and certainly weighs hundreds of pounds at least.
This wasn’t as simple as slipping into the Louvre and making off with a few jewels.
No, this was a complex operation. It probably took a group. Maybe Danny Ocean was the mastermind.
This whole story just deliciously reeks of Louisiana. An object that started in a swamp, moved to the State Capitol, then out to the suburbs, is now missing and is the focus of the state’s top law enforcement officer. This is truly one for the “Louisiana is different” genre of political tales.
There’s Attorney General Liz Murrill who, like literary gumshoes Sherlock Holmes or Encyclopedia Brown, doesn’t know where the plank is but has fingered a suspect: former Louisiana House Speaker Clay Schexnayder.
Earlier this week, prosecutors from Murrill’s office persuaded a Baton Rouge grand jury to indict Schexnayder on counts of theft of a rare Louisiana artifact and malfeasance in office.
Murrill’s biggest clue is this: The board was last seen in Schexnayder’s district office in Gonzales.
The mystery is just the latest twist in the board’s long and interesting history. It began its life as part of a cypress tree in Lake Maurepas more than 1,000 years ago. That tree was cut down in the 1930s. The board was extracted and, in the 1950s, it was donated the state and was hung for display in the state capitol.
On it were engraved words describing its origin. It is a one-of-a-kind piece.
Sometime in the last two decades, the plank was moved to Schexnayder’s district office in Gonzales. Schexnayder said the move came in 2013 and was suggested by then-Speaker of the House Chuck Kleckley, of Lake Charles, because it had been cut from a tree in what was now Schexnayder’s district. Kleckley says he has no memory of making that suggestion and it would have been inappropriate for him to do so.
Murrill may have identified the guilty party, but the board’s whereabouts remain unknown. Schexnayder, who once owned an auto mechanic shop, is no Professor Moriarty. He says he has no idea where it is. Nor does the landlord of his office, who said he didn’t remove it when Schexnayder left.
Now, however, Schexnayder is facing two felony counts.
Murrill sleuthing skills might never been engaged if not for the efforts of Julius Mullins, a retired doctor whose grandfather was the one who donated the piece to the state. Mullins asked Murrill to take the case.
I hope Murrill doesn’t stop now and presses until she has found the board, like some sort of Cajun Miss Marple.
But this is a tough one. She may need outside help. Is Nancy Drew available?
Louisiana
Week 12 – Washington State Cougars vs Louisiana Tech Bulldogs: How To Watch, Preview, Storylines
Washington State fell in its first PAC-12 matchup two weeks ago to Oregon State, and now hosts the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. The Bulldogs are coming off a heartbreaking loss to Delaware, and will look to avoid falling to .500 as the Cougars look to even up their record.
Here’s everything you need to know about Saturday night’s contest:
Washington State Cougars (4-5, 0-1 Pac-12) vs Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (5-4, 3-3 C-USA)
Date: Saturday, November 15th
Time: 10:00 p.m. ET // 7:00 p.m. PT
Location: Martin Stadium – Pullman, WA
TV: The CW Network
Radio: TuneIn Radio
Betting Line: Washington State -7.5 on FanDuel
Did Bye Week Help Cougs Fix Mental Lapses?
Washington State’s loss to Oregon State prior to their bye week was as sloppy as a game can get. Their pass protection looked lost, quarterback Zevi Eckhaus took a major step backward, and their missed field goal at the end of the game capped off a messy game that, by all accounts, should have been a victory. A bye week isn’t a magical “cure-all fix”, but it’s shown time and time again to help teams limit their detail-oriented issues.
Bowl contention is still in play for the Cougs, although it’s far from a guarantee. They need to finish the season strong, and that all starts with putting down a Louisiana Tech team that is inferior on paper. Washington State must come out early and get ahead of the Bulldogs quickly, and managing the small aspects of the game will be essential.
MORE: How Washington State’s 2025 Opponents Fared in Week 11
How Does Washington State’s Passing Scheme Develop?
A conservative passing game that came with the introduction of Eckhaus into the QB1 spot gave the Cougars a much-needed offensive boost. However, the playbook was seemingly opened up in recent weeks, but it has seen the opposite effect. It came to a tipping point against the Beavers, as Eckhaus threw two interceptions and the offense as a whole looked quite out of sync.
With Eckhaus banged up but expected to get the start once again, it will be an interesting storyline as to how Head Coach Jimmy Rogers tailors the offense around his experienced starter. A return to their initial ways could be successful, but continuing to develop around their new scheme might end up being a better option. Only time will tell, but they will have to navigate their ever-inconsistent offense to push for a win.
MORE: Two-QB Rotation Expected as Louisiana Tech Faces Washington State
LA Tech’s Rushing Game an Issue
The Cougs have been far from the best defense in the country against the ground game, and the Bulldogs boast a solid multi-pronged rushing approach. Running backs Clay Thevenin and Omiri Wiggins have combined for a total of 907 yards on the ground through nine games, and quarterback Blake Baker has tacked on another 260 of his own.
Their scoring has also been proficient, hitting the end zone a total of 18 times. Washington State will have to shut down its rushing attack to prevent getting overpowered on the ground. If they are unable to do so, it could be a long game for a Cougars defense that has been heavily relied on to this point of the season.
More Reading Material From Washington State Cougars On SI
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