In 2001, the national high school graduation rate stood at 71 percent. Today, no state in the nation has a high school graduation rate below that number, according to the latest Building a Grad Nation report.

Twenty-three states have moved to pass legislation to increase the number of law enforcement officers in schools. But at a recent listening session on school safety, young people explained why this is a bad idea.

Linked Learning started in California but a similar approach is now used in schools across the country…which emphasizes technical instruction, work-based learning, and wrap-around support services to help students stay on track.

“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