Dropout Factories Targeted In Obama's 2013 Education Budget

educated nation.com

President Barack Obama  has put forth the challenge to all Americans, "Let us all make turning around our schools our collective responsibility as Americans."  An ambitious goal considering the budget cuts, spending restraints and debt facing our federal and state governments.   It is clear however, that the only way our nation will ever overcome the dependence on some of our entitlement programs and effectively compete with other nations, is to invest, invest and invest in education.  Obama's 2013 budget does just that.    

President Obama has targeted approximately 1,600 high schools that account for nearly 50% of our nation's high school dropouts.  Keeping kids in school is a high priority within Obama's 2013 budget and a major cornerstone of the Blueprint for Reform of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.  (ESEA)

"These dropout factories" as the President has referred to them, account for about 10% of all high schools across the United States.  Two-thirds of all minority dropout students attend these dropout factories.  Unless you reside in one of these communities, you can only imagine the devastating consequences for these communities including eroding home values, unemployment, crime and hopelessness. 

Two of the programs contained in ESEA include the GEAR UP and TRIO programs.  GEAR UP serves middle school students providing awareness activities designed to keep students on the path toward higher education.  TRIO which includes the Upward Bound and Talent Search programs, focuses on high school students , specifically lower-income and students from families with no college background not only the access but pathways toward success in higher education.

Additionally, funds are designated for turnaround grants to help poor-performing schools to implement activities and opportunities that will result in dramatic improvement in student performance.  The College Pathways and Accelerated Learning program will focus on accelerated college-level courses for both middle and high school students from low-income families.  This program is designed to take those students who are perceived to be low achievers and candidates for dropping out but who are in fact not challenged by the existing curriculum.      

Promise Neighborhoods, College and Career Ready Students, Investing In Innovations are all programs designed to aggressively combat dropout rates by providing services, opportunities and investments to build achievement, performance and ultimate grow graduation levels.  Changing outcomes is the priority with each of these programs. 

As a nation, we must make education of our young people are number one priority.  Failure to do so will only result in more youth dropping out of school and our nation falling behind other nations of the world.    These dreadful statistics of our dropout factories should alarm each and every American citizen.  As President Obama said, "It is time for all of us, no matter what our backgrounds, to come together and solve this epidemic".