2218 high school dropouts in 2004 cost Wyoming $550 million in lost wages, taxes and productivity. 3,051 dropouts cost Montana $793 Million

The 2,218 students in Wyoming who dropped out of high school in 2004 will exact a heavy toll on the state’s economy over their lifetimes, according to a Washington, D.C-based policy, research and advocacy organization.

The students each will lose out on $260,000 in wages they otherwise might have earned by having more education, ultimately costing the state more than $550 million in lost wages, taxes and productivity, the Alliance for Excellent Education http://www.all4ed.org/ said Wednesday.

And the organization said its calculations for each state were conservative. Figures were calculated only for one year’s worth of dropouts, and the group didn’t speculate about the lost earning power of dropouts who could have gone on to college.

Full Report: http://www.all4ed.org/press/pr_022806.html

By MEAD GRUVER
Associated Press writer

Full Story: http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2006/03/02/news/wyoming/7d3c17deb90875988725712500022947.txt

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Dropout rates high, but fixes under way

Survey: 9 of 10 students had passing grades when they left.
By Amanda Paulson | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

They’re the kids who fall through the cracks, the ones who rarely get extra attention or tutoring – who, very often, disappear even from the statistics.

But high school dropouts are getting increasing attention as groundbreaking studies show how alarming the problem is. Nearly a third of high school students don’t graduate on time; among blacks, Hispanics, and native Americans, it’s almost half.

Now, a new survey, released Thursday, suggests that the problem, while deep, can be fixed. Most students don’t drop out because they can’t do the work. Nearly 90 percent had passing grades when they left school, according to the survey of dropouts by Civic Enterprises. Their major reason for opting out? The classes were too boring.

Full Story: http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0303/p01s02-legn.html

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Thanks to David Young for these interesting facts:

I enjoyed reading your recent note about the K-18 school system and the emphasis on excellence. I have been working on a MT Youth Profile; below are a few snipets, attached is a current draft with a number of data points yet to be filled in.

Which of the following MT Youth data points do you find most shocking, if any?

Percent (grades 9-12) who drank alcohol-prev 30 days (2003) 49.5%

Percent (grades 9-12) who drank alcohol before the age of 13 (2003) 30.4%

Percent (grades 9-12) who currently use marijuana (2003) 23.1%

Percent (grades 9-12) who had ever used inhalants (2003) 13.8%

Percent (grades 9-12) who had ever used methamphetamines (2003) 9.3%

Percent (grades 9-12) who currently use cocaine (2003) 3.8%

Percent (grades 9-12) who were offered/sold/given illegal drug on school prop 26.9%

Percent (grades 9-12) who seriously considered attempting suicide 18.9%

Percent (grades 9-12) who made a suicide plan 14.8%

Percent (grades 9-12) who attempted suicide 9.7%

Looking forward to the new emphasis on how our schools are doing.

It is well known that school dropouts are much more likely than their peers who graduate to be unemployed, living in poverty, receiving public assistance, in prison, on death row, unhealthy, divorced, and single parents with children who also drop out from school themselves…….If you ever wondered why society should focus on keeping kids in school, just check these few facts:

1. Every nine (9) seconds a student in America’s schools becomes a dropout

2. A total of 3.8 million youth ages 18-24 (15% of total youth pop) are neither employed nor in school

3. Only two-thirds (66%) of all students in the US who enter the 9th grade graduate four years later with a regular High School diploma; less than one out of two with a disability graduate four years later

4. High school students from low-income families drop out of school at six (6) times the rate of their peers from higher-income families

5. Three-quarters (75%) of state prison inmates are dropouts, as are 59% of federal inmates; high school dropouts are 3.5 times more likely to be incarcerated than high school graduates

6. The death rate for persons with fewer than 12 years of education is 2.5 times higher than for those with 13 or more years of education

7. School dropouts are substantially more likely to rely on public assistance than high school graduates; the cost to the general public for male dropouts currently ages 25-34 is $24 billion annually; it is estimated that the 1.2 million school dropouts in 2004 cost the nation more than $325 billion in lost wages, taxes, and productivity over their lifetimes

8. High school dropouts, on average, earn $9,200 less per year than high school graduates, and about $1 million less over a lifetime than college graduates
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Further information for any skeptics is contained in the following three reports:

1. High School Dropouts Cost the Country Billions in Lost Wages and Taxes

More than 1.2 million students didn’t graduate from U.S. high schools in 2004, costing the nation more than $325 billion in lost wages, taxes, and productivity over their lifetimes, reports the Alliance for Excellent Education. The report has a state-by-state chart showing the losses over a lifetime to each state and the District of Columbia.
http://www.all4ed.org/press/pr_022806.html

2. The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts

Nearly one-third of American teenagers — and nearly half of minority teens — fail to graduate from high school in four years, according to research. Why and what can be done to curb this trend? This Civic Enterprises study, commissioned by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, surveyed 467 racially and ethnically diverse 16- to 25-year-olds who had dropped out. Among the findings: only about one-third were failing, the rest (88 percent) reported having Cs and above. Respondents said they found classes boring and didn¿t feel motivated or inspired to work — researchers say this is, in part, code for lacking the basic skills needed for high school work.
The report recommends that school districts and states improve access to supports for students, develop "early-warning systems" to identify kids at risk, and consider raising the legal ¿drop-out¿ age to 17 or 18. The report also calls for getting parents involved before the 11th hour, when most of the surveyed students said their parents became more involved in their schoolwork.
http://www.civicenterprises.net/pdfs/thesilentepidemic3-06.pdf

3. Whatever It Takes: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth

Every nine seconds in America, a youth becomes a drop out. Research indicates that many see value in finishing school, and would do so if they felt it possible. What can educators, policymakers, and community leaders do to reconnect out-of-school youth? This report looks at effective efforts in 12 communities, including charter and alternative schools for kids who have already left school; a partnership among a school district, community college, and local organizations; and a year-round school with ties to local businesses that offers courses in high-demand skills.
http://www.aypf.org/publications/WhateverItTakes/WITfull.pdf
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David M. Young, Professor
Montana State University
e-mail: [email protected]
Phone: 406-994-5552
Fax: 406-994-1756