When Girls don’t graduate, we all fail. Are the public schools listening?

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IBNN has posted many articles about education from the Black male point of view. What’s happening now can only be called the beginning of an epidemic that was bound to affect Black women, simply because no one is really addressing Black males. Pieces (lot) of this story were a part of the report done by the National Women’s Law Center in 2007. IBNN felt it necessary to resurrect this report in light of the growing number of women (K-12) dropping out of school. Read the full report here: National Women’s Law Center (report; click to download PDF.)

Fast Tube by Casper

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“If Black males are failing in high school, the trajectory of bad teaching and the war against Black students affects Black women. Come on people, this isn’t rocket science.”

United States of America (IBNN/Education, Drop Outs, Politics/August 1, 2012)…How curious that a report done in 2007 is still applicable today in 2012.

On Wednesday, July 25, 2012 during his remarks at the National Urban League conference in New Orleans, LA, President Obama announced he would sign an Executive Order today to improve outcomes and advance educational opportunities for African Americans. Could this be a political ploy or is President Obama serious about the education of Black men and women who seem with each grade up (K-12), go down in proficiency. Some local clergy and educators say that Obama’s announcement at the National Urban League conference was nothing more than political puffery in an election year. Others think President Obama is confident about his re-election in November and will start to address the needs of his people; openly and with a dedication that only he can offer.

At present, there is no consistent, uniform system for tracking or computing nationwide graduation rates. As a result, any study of the dropout problem must rely on estimates, rather than precise calculations, of how many students are dropping out of school. Estimates vary depending on several factors: (a) whether researchers use a sample survey to derive an estimate for the total population of dropouts or rely on administrative data like individual school records or statewide records; (b) whether students who fail to graduate in four years are considered dropouts or are considered graduates if they receive their diploma after six or seven years; and (c) whether students who complete alternative certificates such as the GED are considered high school graduates.

The challenge with women dropping out of school is a generational disaster with one-in-two female high School dropouts aged 25-64 unemployed. A report done by the National Women’s Law Center says, “Across racial and ethnic groups, female dropouts are substantially less likely to be employed than female students who finish high school. Overall, in 2006, 30% of female adults who completed high school were unemployed, compared to 47% of adult females who dropped out. Indeed, the more education a woman receives, the more her employment prospects improve; a woman with an Associate’s degree or a Bachelor’s degree is 1.5 times more likely to be employed than a woman who did not complete high school.

The report also says, “Dropping out of school is a multi-generational problem. Not only are students who drop out of school likely to suffer the personal consequences of dropping out, such as lower lifetime income and worse overall health, but also they are also more likely to see their own children drop out of school and suffer the same consequences. In addition, although children are particularly at risk of dropping out themselves in families where one or both parents are high school dropouts, the educational level of mothers may make a greater difference. A recent study of female students found that while the daughters of men who graduate from high school are 15% less likely to drop out of school than daughters whose fathers dropped out; the daughters of women who graduate from high school are one-third less likely to drop out of school than daughters of women who dropped out.

Approximately 1,000 high school students will drop out with each hour that passes in a school day in America. This means that 30 percent of the classes of 2007, or 1.2 million students were estimated to have dropped out last year.

The high school dropout crisis has received significant recent attention from researchers, policy makers and the media. It has been widely reported that one in three boys, and nearly 50 percent or more of some racial and ethnic groups of boys, will fail to graduate from high school with a diploma in four years. This is an alarming finding that demands prompt remedial action.

Are public school systems listening?

About the National Women’s Law Center:
The National Women’s Law Center is a nonprofit organization that has been working since 1972 to advance and protect women’s legal rights. The Center focuses on major policy areas of importance to women and their families, including employment, education, health and reproductive rights, and family economic security.

The Center is grateful for the work of the numerous members of the Center’s staff who contributed to this report: Marcia D. Greenberger, Jocelyn Samuels, Neena K. Chaudhry, Fatima Goss Graves, Lara Kaufmann, Theresa Keeley, Taryn Wilgus Null, Lauren Seemeyer, Kristina Gupta, Alexis Kuznick, Kristina Petronko, Kelly Robinson, Elizabeth White, and Keaton Wong, with design and production by Lisa M. LeMair. The major funders of When Girls Don’t Graduate, We All Fail are the Beech Street Foundation and the MARGARET Fund. Additional support was provided by the American Express Foundation, Herb Block Foundation, and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.