Michigan’s elected officials spend a lot of time talking about education, but they are missing the most basic factor shaping student achievement today: none of it matters if children aren’t in the classroom.

Michigan is undergoing an attendance crisis that threatens to undermine every other potential education reform. Nearly 388,000 Michigan kids were considered "chronically absent” last year, meaning they missed 10% or more of the school year — roughly 18 days. That includes excused absences, such as illness and appointments.

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