“They might go to math class and wonder, ‘Why am I learning algebra?’ But if the career you want to pursue in, say, construction, will have you using those skills every day, you think about it differently. We get them to understand how the work they’re doing in school is related to what’s coming next.”

Importantly, the Alliance for Excellent Education maps the positive impacts that a 90 percent high school graduation rate would have on local economies, breaking the data down by state, metropolitan area, and demographic group so that it can be useful for local community leaders, policymakers, educators and parents.

Relationships matter. So what can national, state, and local organizations do to increase the number and quality of caring adults in the lives of students? And how can those relationships help support efforts to increase the graduation rate?

Nearly half a million children go missing every year in the United States, according to the most recent data available from the FBI. As advocates spotlight National Missing Children’s Day on May 25, the question to ask is not just how many children are missing, but who—and perhaps most importantly, what to do about it.

Ashley Lyles attributes her success in life to the teachers, family, and mentors that have supported her along the way—which is why she has dedicated her own life to paying it forward.

“I’ve always thought that we need to prepare our students for the world, but I’m learning so quickly that we need to prepare the world for our students,” said Christina Cody, a science teacher and founder of the youth health initiative FIT2gether, at the recent Atlantic Education Summit.

How can youth-serving organizations and adult allies ensure that the energy around youth voice continues long after the current moment has passed? How can organizations that serve youth better empower young people to voice their opinions and ideas on the issues that affect them the most?

“Young people have such unlimited potential,” Promise of America Honoree Sandra Samuels said in an interview at fourth annual Promise Night.

At a loud and energetic College Signing Day in Philadelphia, celebrities, athletes, and politicians joined former First Lady Michelle Obama to celebrate graduating high school seniors who have chosen to continue on to higher education.

Current Ballou students acknowledge the school’s issues with attendance, but they say the school portrayed in the news scarcely resembles the one they know and love. Instead, the students hear a narrative that feels all too familiar: people don’t think “poor black kids” have what it takes to succeed.

As Autism Awareness Month comes to a close, three new reports show that students with disabilities are subjected to school discipline at severely disproportionate rates, resulting in chronic exclusion and lost learning opportunities.

As support for sexual assault prevention gains traction across the country, a group of experts point to three strategies that have proven effective: Start teaching students about consent early, empower them to find solutions through intervention, and include parents in the conversation.

When Lisa Early was a kid, she pledged allegiance to the flag every morning at school with her hand over her heart. “I believed it described America, and that my nation was principled and good,” she

In the spirit of collaboration and to support the current movement to create and preserve schools as safe places for young people, America’s Promise Alliance, along with two other partner organization

A new report from the Arizona Mayors Education Roundtable projects that high school non-completion and disconnected youth will cost the state upwards of $100 billion. Here’s how three Arizona communities are keeping young people on track towards completion, connection, and prosperity.

With National Volunteer Week around the corner (April 15-21), the Points of Light Foundation is shining a light on the people and causes that are making a difference and inspiring other people to give back.