North Carolina’s high school graduation rate is alarming -- only 68% of our students graduate from high school. And for some groups of students, the picture is even bleaker -- a 60% high school graduation rate for Black students, 55% for low-income students, and 52% for Hispanic students. What’s more, the vast majority of the nation’s high schools with the highest dropout rates (80%) are located in only 15 states, and North Carolina is one of those states. Our students, our schools, our communities can do better. We must do better.
In today’s competitive economy, our young people must be prepared for jobs that increasingly require an education beyond high school. But unfortunately, in 2003, 3.5 million Americans ages 16 to 25 did not have a high school diploma and were not enrolled in school.
While these numbers are startling, we do have reason for hope. According to a report by Civic Enterprises, 88% of high school dropouts had passing grades when they dropped out; 58% dropped out with two or fewer years left to complete high school; 66% said they would have worked harder in school if expectations had been higher; 81% realized a high school diploma was vital to their success in life; and 74% said they would have stayed in school if they had the opportunity to do it all over again. These numbers tell us that getting more young people to stay in school is achievable.
We know there are three R’s to making our public high schools work better for today's students -- rigor, relevance, and relationships. First, students must have access to a challenging curriculum that will prepare them both for college and for work. Second, students need to have opportunities through hands-on activities such as internships and job shadowing to experience and understand the connections between what they are learning in the classroom and what skills they will need in the working world. And third, students and their parents must have information and support when it comes to high school graduation requirements, college entrance requirements, and the financial aid available at the Federal, state, and local levels to pay for college. More importantly we must make sure that students build relationships with counselors and teachers who are tracking their attendance and following their progress. No one should fall through the cracks.
Senator Burr believes we should not only make sure more students get a high school diploma, but we should also be putting them on the path toward a college degree. To help States, districts, and schools achieve these goals, Senator Burr has introduced the Graduate for a Better Future Act and the No Child Left Behind Act of 2007. Both bills would create a competitive grant program that would:
- Create “models of excellence” for public high schools that challenge their students academically.
- Establish academic catch-up programs for students who enter high school academically behind.
- Implement early warning systems to quickly identify students at risk of dropping out of high school.
- Provide comprehensive college guidance to ensure all students and their parents are regularly notified of high school graduation requirements and college entrance requirements. These programs would also make sure that students and their parents are given the guidance and assistance they need when they apply for college and financial aid.
- Promote work-based and experiential learning opportunities such as job-shadowing, internships, and community service, so students can make the connection between what they are learning in school and how it applies to the workplace.
- Set-up student advisement programs in which all students are assigned to and have regular meetings with an academic teacher advisor.
Senator Burr believes we can increase the number of young people who choose to stay in school and reap the lifelong benefits of a diploma. Now is the time to face our dropout crisis with initiatives that will have a positive impact on the lives of these students. By providing more challenging classes, offering more internship and work study programs, and building better relationships with students, we can do better.
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