12-Point Plan Addresses School Dropout Crisis

If you’re reading a blog dedicated to keeping kids in school and preparing them for life (which is what CIS Houston does every day in more than 100 Houston area schools), you’re probably aware that we are facing a drop-out crisis in our country and in our community. You might be interested in what the National Education Association has to say about this crisis and its suggestions to curb it.

The nation is experiencing a dropout crisis -- one that has many contributing factors, demanding a wide range of tactics. That is the news from the National Education Association (NEA), which has unveiled a 12-point plan that will require the efforts of parents, teachers, business leaders, and lawmakers. Speaking at a press conference, NEA president Reg Weaver said, "We've identified the crisis, and it will take everyone sharing responsibility to correct it. This is no longer about students slipping through the cracks of our educational system. Those cracks are now craters." Among the key elements in the plan are mandatory graduation or equivalency, workplace options that would allow parents to participate in their child's education, and early intervention in the form of universal preschool and full-day kindergarten programs. For more, click here.

by Melissa Simon, CIS Development Director