Listen to the podcast version (MP3) Attendance is recovering. After years of pandemic-era chronic absenteeism, the numbers are falling back toward normal — and that is worth celebrating. But Wyoming boards should not mistake presence for engagement. A student can show up every day and still be checked out: mentally absent, emotionally withdrawn, avoiding something they have not named. None of that shows up on an attendance report. THE EARLY SIGNS COME BEFORE THE ABSENCES Dise