Hedy N. Chang

hchang
Hedy N. Chang
Executive Director,
Attendance Works

Hedy N. Chang is executive director of Attendance Works, a national and state initiative aimed at advancing student success by addressing chronic absence. She co-authored the seminal report "Present, Engaged and Accounted For: The Critical Importance of Addressing Chronic Absence in the Early Grades," as well as numerous other articles about student attendance. Deeply committed to promoting two-generation solutions to achieving a more just and equitable society, Chang has spent more than two decades working in the fields of family support, family economic success, education, and child development. She served as a senior program officer at the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund and as co-director of California Tomorrow. In February 2013, Chang was named a Champion of Change by the White House for her commitment to furthering African American Education. She received her MPP from the Harvard Kennedy School.

updated 2019

Contributing topics
Education finance
Educational governance & policy
Supporting students’ social-emotional, mental & physical health
Understanding, measuring & improving student outcomes
Contributing initiatives
CORE-PACE Research Partnership
COVID-19 Recovery
Commentary by Hedy N. Chang
: A Tiered Approach to Ensuring Students Are Present, Engaged, and Supported in the 2020–21 School Year
: Measuring Daily Attendance and Participation During COVID-19: An Invaluable Tool for Reducing Educational Inequity
Hedy N. Chang in the Media
: Attendance is a Bright Spot in the Latest California School Dashboard
: How Are Students Doing? New California School Dashboard is Out
: Disparities in ‘Unexcused’ Absences Deepen Education Inequities
: Students are Chronically Absent Across the Country. COVID Seems to Have Made It Worse.
: How do 'Unexcused' Absences Disrupt Efforts to Improve Attendance?
Publications by Hedy N. Chang
Unpacking California’s Chronic Absence Crisis Through 2022–23: Seven Key Facts
Unpacking California’s Chronic Absence Crisis Through 2022–23
Seven Key Facts
Students are considered chronically absent when they miss 10 percent or more of school for any reason. Left unaddressed, chronic absence can translate into students having difficulty learning to read by Grade 3, reaching grade-level standards in…
Disparities in Unexcused Absences Across California Schools
Disparities in Unexcused Absences Across California Schools
Finding effective ways to improve school attendance is more important than ever given the dramatic increases in chronic absence nationwide and in California. This report presents a compelling case for using data about unexcused absences to advance a…
Approaches to Reducing Chronic Absenteeism
Acknowledging the importance of students simply being in school, California has made student attendance part of its accountability system. This brief covers a session in which it was pointed out that using chronic absenteeism as an…