In March 2006, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation issued John Bridgeland's scathing report, The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts. It begins, "There is a high school dropout epidemic in America. Each year, almost one third of all public high school students - and nearly one half of all blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans - fail to graduate from public high school with their class."
A few weeks later, Time magazine's cover story, Dropout Nation, brought the crisis to newsstands and supermarket checkout counters, while Oprah Winfrey brought it to millions of television viewers. Then the Economic Policy Institute released its own study suggesting that perhaps the dropout rate was "only" 18 percent. The debate about the numbers was on, and will continue - as if there is some moral advantage to losing only one out of five of our students, rather than one out of three.
Thanks to this surge in media attention, millions of Americans were hearing for the first time that we do indeed have a "dropout epidemic" in this country. And they were learning about the grim real-life consequences, in a new century that demands workplace skills that most often require at least post-high-school study.
America's three and a half million dropouts ages 16 to 25 are truly have-nots: They do not have a high school diploma, and as a result they have little hope for a decent future. They are far more likely than their peers to be unemployed, live in poverty, experience chronic poor health, depend upon social services, and go to jail. Four out of every 10 young adult dropouts receive some type of government assistance. A dropout is more than eight times as likely to be in jail or prison as a person with at least a high school diploma. Half of all prison inmates are high school dropouts. In fact, on any given day, more young male dropouts are in prison than at a job.
The dire consequences for these young people are mirrored in the costs to American society - to you, your children, and the future of our country. Dropouts are costing us billions of dollars in lost wages and increased social supports.
Business leaders, economists, and Chambers of Commerce across the country agree: In a time of intense international competition, America is unable to recruit an adequate workforce while losing one third of its youth. The opportunities that you and your children take for granted are being eroded, day by day, as America is transformed into a society of haves and have-nots. In 20 years, the impact of fiscal failure and social division will be felt keenly by the haves, as America's global economic leadership dwindles and the nation is unable to pay its huge "bill" generated by the have-nots.
The dropout epidemic is creating a divided society whose consequences will be tragic for all Americans, not just the young people themselves. The dropout epidemic is at once a practical disaster for our economy, a human tragedy for the children and families directly concerned, and a justice issue that confronts every citizen.
We can stop the dropout epidemic.
A growing consensus of educators and social service providers is rallying behind a solution that works. The purpose of this book is to describe that solution, and show how Americans at every level of society - local leaders desperate to stop the hemorrhaging of youth from their school system, foundation heads and corporate CEOs equally determined to put their money and influence to work in this vital cause, and of course the parents and teachers of these students - can come together and stop the epidemic.
A million dropouts, or two million, or three, is an outrageous tragedy. But even one young person abandoned to a life with no future is equally tragic, equally unacceptable. Our collective goal must be a 21st century America in which, at long last, we have seen the last dropout.
When will we see the last dropout? No one knows, of course, other than to say, "Not in this generation." But we can say this: Young people will stop dropping out of school when they receive the community support and resources they need to learn, stay in school, and graduate prepared for life.
They will stop dropping out when we admit that our country doesn't have a "youth problem" - we have an adult problem. We - the adults, including parents, who have a stake in the community's children - have not succeeded in weaving a safety net of support that will keep kids safe, healthy and motivated. The business community in particular has not yet committed its energy and expertise to champion the connection of resources with schools. Nor has America modeled the kind of caring community that can serve as an inspiration and a source of hope for young people. All the "school reform" in the world will not accomplish this. It is not about better teachers, better schools, more money. It is about hope.
My colleagues and I have spent the past 30 years developing an antidote to the dropout epidemic. This is the good news I want to share with you in this book: There is a cure for the dropout epidemic. It is at work in hundreds of communities. It will work in your community too.
The Last Dropout is about a journey that began in Harlem in the 1960s, and took us to Wall Street, to Atlanta, and ultimately to the White House. We were "street workers," trying to help young people who had already dropped out to return to school and get their diplomas. Over time, we realized it was useless to keep bailing out the basement unless we also turned off the tap of potential dropouts, and that meant working inside the public school system. The Communities In Schools organization, founded in 1977 originally as Cities In Schools, was the result. CIS now reaches more than one million young people and their families annually, in more than 3,400 schools. These kids are chronically underserved - young people who would fall far below the national average for every measure of student success. Yet CIS-tracked students are staying in school and graduating prepared for life. Why? What makes the difference?
The key principles in The Last Dropout were not developed in a think tank or a graduate school. Our work with kids and families has benefited enormously from the research and documentation of the academic community. But I do want to make clear that most of the lessons in this book were learned through first-hand experience, from the ground up, by sitting down and breaking bread with families, students, teachers, and community members, as well as business and government leaders.
I've said that the dropout epidemic is also a justice issue, and I want to emphasize that again. How we respond to it will determine whether the United States becomes a permanently divided nation of those who make it and those who do not. Is that the kind of world we want our children to inherit? A world divided between gated communities and prisons, between winners and losers? I promise you, the prospect will be bleak, no matter which side of the fence you're on. We simply cannot continue on a path that produces such drastic economic and human inequity.
The Last Dropout offers the key principles that the Communities In Schools movement has tested over three decades, principles that lead to better schools and successful kids.
One: Programs don't change kids - relationships do.
Two: The dropout crisis is not just an education issue.
Three: Young people need the five real basics, not just the Three R's: a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult; a safe place to learn and grow; a healthy start and a healthy future; a marketable skill to use upon graduation; and a chance to give back to peers and community.
Four: The community must weave a safety net around its children in a manner that is personal, accountable, and coordinated.
Five: Every community needs a "Champion for Children" - a neutral third party with "magic eyes" to coordinate and broker the diverse community resources into the schools on behalf of young people and families.
Six: Educators and policy-makers can't do it alone . . . and they will welcome your help.
Seven: Curing the dropout epidemic will demand change, not just charity.
Eight: Scalability, sustainability, and evidence-based strategies are essential to creating permanent change in the way our education system combats the dropout epidemic.
Nine: Our children need three things from you - your awareness, your advocacy, and your action.
I will clarify and expand upon each of these in the chapters that follow. However, I want first to caution the reader to avoid the "silver-bullet syndrome" - that is, the temptation to adopt and implement only one or two of these key principles and disregard the rest. In fact, it is precisely this fragmented approach that has doomed other community-development and school-reform efforts in the past, including some state and local Communities In Schools efforts. If there's one thing we've learned over 30 years of doing this work, it's that it takes a total commitment to all of these principles to have any meaningful and lasting effect on the dropout problem.
Finally, I want to address a few words to the business and philanthropic leaders who I believe will find in The Last Dropout a cause for optimism and a blueprint for change. Our view is that you have a special, critical role to play in ending the dropout epidemic. Your community needs you to use the power of the private and nonprofit sectors - your connections, your knowledge, your organizational skills, your practical experience - to leverage resources for schools, children, and families, and to influence how private-, public- and nonprofit-sector institutions at all levels distribute funds for education and family services. Moreover, your nation needs you to help these strategies "go to scale" in a way that will change, permanently and effectively, how America's schools educate their students.
We don't need you to create more charities. We need you to think and work differently. I hope this book will help.
Most important, we need you to lead. A lot of lives are depending on you.
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Released on September 18, 2007.
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The bottom line is that this nation cannot rightfully expect to lead the 21st century's information and technology driven global economy when we have upwards of 30 percent of our young people not even graduating from high school.
Thomas J. Donahue,
President and CEO,
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Endorsements for The Last Dropout
We can all agree that all students deserve an education that prepares them for college, career and life. But with more than one million students dropping out a year, our belief in this is not enough - we need to understand the drop-out problem and take the action that Bill Milliken suggests. If enough of us just do this, we can create an education system that works for all young people.
Patty Stonesifer
CEO, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
"Every child needs and deserves a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult." I've heard Bill Milliken say this a thousand times in the 12 years I've known him - to teachers, public officials, corporate leaders - to anyone who will listen. Bill has done so much to help kids stay in school and do well in their studies. These stories are inspiring!
Jim Sinegal
President and CEO, Costco Wholesale Corporation
Bill Milliken is a modern-day prophet whose voice calls us to step forward and act for the common good of all our children. If you want to make a difference in the lives of children, if you want communities that work for everyone, then read this book.
Richard C. Harwood
President, Harwood Institute for Public Innovation
We can't possibly succeed in the hypercompetitive global economy with one third of our young people on the bench. Additional rigor and relevance are important, but the crisis in our schools also requires all of us to pitch in. We need to mobilize an army of adult volunteers to come along side our dedicated educators and change the dynamics of the "Dropout Nation." Bill Milliken is a powerful, effective advocate because he has lived the revolution he is helping to lead.
Governor Tim Pawlenty
Chair of the National Governors Association
The success of our students and schools is essential to the future economic well-being of our communities and our country. Bank of America has been honored to support Communities In Schools and their efforts to turn potential dropouts into student leaders for today, and our nation's leaders for tomorrow.
Kenneth D. Lewis
Chairman and CEO, Bank of America
Bill Milliken has spent a lifetime learning what the rest of us would be wise not forget.
The Last Dropout is a call to awareness, advocacy, and action. It is a road map for a society that has lost its way in its commitment to the next generation, and there is not grace enough in heaven for any of us who do not think about those who will come after us. I do not suggest you read this book; I suggest you take it to heart.
Noah benShea
Philosopher and Author
I commend my good friend Bill Milliken, of Communities In Schools, for sharing his vision for a future in which there are no more high school dropouts. His blueprint for change should be studied closely in communities across the country. It is imperative that we all work together to give all students the support they need to reach their potential.
Richard G. Lugar
United States Senator
Bill Milliken's book, The Last Dropout, is proof that visionaries like him see the full potential in our children. These are the visionaries and leaders of our future and of our civilizations. If you want to make a difference in the world, read this book.
Deepak Chopra
Author, The Book of Secrets
Bill Milliken's sensitive, out-of-the-box vision has inserted an effective and proven safety net into the enormous dropout problem.
Herb Alpert
Musician, Producer, and Co-Founder of A"M Records
Bill Milliken's book is essential reading for any businessperson who cares about the future of education in America and the importance of an educated workforce. He vividly illustrates the power of collaboration and innovation to combat the dropout epidemic that plagues our local school systems. The Last Dropout describes a leveraged alternative to throwing money at seemingly intractable problems; it describes a robust strategy that delivers breakthrough results-- and offers a significant multiplier on our charitable dollars. America's children deserve to benefit from these insights.
Thomas J. Tierney
Chairman and Co-Founder, The Bridgespan Group
I have always had great admiration for Bill, right from the beginning, for his dedication and commitment to kids and education.
Burt Bacharach
Legendary Composer
The Last Dropout, like Communities In Schools, is about hope, belief, commitment and love: the hope for a better future for all children; the belief that certain principles, applied effectively, actually do make a positive difference in schools and communities; and the commitment, reinforced with love, to do whatever we must to ensure all kids succeed in school and prepare for life.
Wally Amos
Literacy Advocate and Founder, Chip & Cookie, Inc.
Bill Milliken is one of my heroes. He made a lifelong commitment to young people and always walks his talk. This book tells the truth - with facts and stories and heart and humor - about how 'the system' has failed so many of our kids, and what we can and must do about that.
Russell Simmons
Founder, Def Jam Music and Phat Fashions
We must dispel the lie that our children's destinies are determined essentially by the families they're born into or the color of their skin. Comprehensive student support services that build resiliency skills in students are a key strategy to dispel that lie, and Bill Milliken has been a pioneer in this arena for many years.
Joel Klein
Chancellor, New York City Department of Education
No one but Bill Milliken could have written The Last Dropout, because no one but Bill Milliken has been able to connect his own personal journey so powerfully to what America's students need today. This book is a well of inspiration from which one can drink again and again. If we are serious about a different vision for America - one that begins with education and runs straight through to justice for all - The Last Dropout shows us how to give our children the hope and promise they deserve.
Billy Shore
Founder and Executive Director, Share Our Strength
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