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How a dropout factory raised its graduation rate from 53 percent to 75 percent in three years

The Hechinger Report

By 2013, Webster managed to graduate just 53 percent of its students, and it was clear to school and district officials that drastic change was in order. The change in the school culture since the Diplomas Now partnership began in 2013 is palpable, marked by rising expectations for students.

Dropout 79
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Intent vs. Impact

The Principal of Change

This is one of my favourite quotes from a college dropout who felt a post-secondary education was no longer relevant to what he needed to be successful in our world today: “Wanting” is not good enough on it’s own; the impact of our actions are how progress is always measured.

Dropout 43
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DEBT WITHOUT DEGREE: The human cost of college debt that becomes “purgatory”

The Hechinger Report

In doing so, he joined more than 108,000 other students who withdrew from Georgia’s public colleges and universities between 2013 and 2015 with thousands of dollars in federal student debt but no degree. Students who withdraw are also much more likely to default on their loans; dropouts make up two-thirds of defaults nationwide.

Dropout 90
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When math lessons at a goat farm beat sitting behind a desk

The Hechinger Report

Vermont’s experiment in experiential learning goes back a number of years, but it took off in 2013, when the legislature passed a law that lets students meet state graduation standards through work-based experiences. Among Act 77’s aims: to reduce high school dropout rates, particularly among low-income students. (In

Report 103
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Getting a GED while still enrolled in high school

The Hechinger Report

In New Orleans, the large number of dropouts who lack HiSET credentials drives the astronomically high count of so-called “opportunity youth.” Across Louisiana, students who fail to complete school can take the High School Equivalency Test, or HiSET, which has replaced the General Equivalency Diploma (GED) in more than 20 states.

Dropout 53
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High schools fail to provide legally required education to students with disabilities

The Hechinger Report

Michael McLaughlin and his mother, Michelle, at Michael’s 2013 graduation. Even students with cognitive delays may be able to attend modified post-secondary programs if given adequate preparation and encouragement in school. He graduated in 2013. Photo courtesy Michelle McLaughlin.

Education 111
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How one city closed the digital divide for nearly all its students

The Hechinger Report

He has worked there since graduating from nearby Fremont High School in 2013 and is now the Tech Hub coordinator? Tech Exchange employees have answered more than 10,000 tech support calls from community members in various languages, according to Mickens. At 16, Kemish Rosales learned how to fix computers as an intern at Tech Exchange.