Ohioans deserve public schools in which students are educated to be informed, productive, critical thinking citizens ready to pursue the next step. Children deserve more than barely meeting the lowest of standards.

But what about kids who aren’t making it to school at all?

According to the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce, public school students in the state have an approximately 25.6% rate of chronic absenteeism. It is a problem to which many factors contribute.

Frankly, we are failing these kids on many fronts. An Ohio Capital Journal reporter spoke with Adero Robinson, CEO of Communities in Schools of Ohio. “The mental health of students is becoming a lot more challenging to manage,” Robinson said. “That’s why we have to think about how do we find ways to deal with depression, anxiety, cell phones and social media, those types of things.”

Politicians understand the need and are ready with lots of ideas. Two lawmakers were so desperate to solve the problem they pitched a bill that would have paid students to show up at school.

As Robinson told the Capital Journal, more funding to improve student wellbeing is always welcome, but such a payment program would simply not have been sustainable.

Whatever the solution, school districts and policymakers must be working toward getting more of these kids regularly in classrooms.

When we focus on what students need, we’ll make progress more quickly than we think.