Earlier today, President Barack Obama spoke about high school dropouts, and how he hopes to help the cause. The numbers are scary. About 7,000 students drop out of high school a day. Yes, everyday! That’s more than a million a year nationwide and you can only imagine the consequences of all those students not completing their high school education. You’ve heard BoardBuzz talk about high school graduation rates before, but alongside President Obama’s efforts is another familiar face, General Colin Powell. He and his wife, Alma, and their organization (America’s Promise Alliance) are starting Grad Nation, which they hope will curb the dropout problem.
What’s common knowledge doesn’t mean there’s a common solution. The education community understands that many of these dropouts are in large and urban districts, and these same districts are the ones being concentrated on as the lowest performing schools that need to be changed. The administration and the Department of Education have made it very clear that they are targeting the 2,000 schools that contribute the most to the dropout problem. But with grants and promises of major funding coming from the government, is that all these districts need? We know, based on the work that the Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE) does within NSBA, that one size does not fit all. Each district has its unique issue to address and a network of like-minded solutions must be draw upon for success. We’re hopeful that the network set up by America’s Promise will help shape policies and programs that help school districts succeed. With $900 million to utilize as transformational grants, BoardBuzz hopes it pays off and changes graduation rates for good.
