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Building a Grad Nation: Progress & Challenge in Ending the High School Dropout Epidemic

February 20, 2013

The most comprehensive graduation research report of late found that for the first time the U.S. is on track to meet the national Grad Nation goal of a 90 percent high school graduation rate by the class of 2020. The national high school graduation rate increased 6.5 percentage points since 2001 with an average growth of 1.25 percentage points each year from 2006-2010 to 78.2. As a result of this acceleration more than 200,000 additional students received diplomas in 2010 than in 2006. The 2013 report update of Building a Grad Nation: Progress and Challenge in Ending the High School Dropout Epidemic, released February 25 by the Alliance for Excellent Education, America’s Promise Alliance, Civic Enterprises, and the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University, shows that the nation continues to make progress.

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About the Author

America's Promise Alliance

Mission & Purpose

America’s Promise Alliance is the nation’s largest partnership dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth. America's Promise brings together 350 national organizations representing nonprofits, businesses, communities, educators and policymakers. America’s Promise focuses on ending the high school dropout crisis and ensuring that students graduate ready for college and the 21st century workforce. The Grad Nation campaign, launched in 2010, is the centerpiece of these efforts. The high school dropout crisis demonstrates a critical shortage of the Five Promises in the lives of millions of children.

The Five Promises

The Five Promises are the fundamental resources that young people need to succeed in life. They are: Caring Adults, Safe Places, A Healthy Start, Effective Education, and Opportunities to Help Others. The work of America's Promise is built around the framework of ensuring that more young people experience more of the Promises. Children who receive at least four of the Five Promises are much more likely than those who experience only one or zero Promises to succeed academically, socially and civically. They are more likely to avoid violence, contribute to their communities and achieve high grades in school. Receiving at least four of the Five Promises also appears to mitigate gaps across racial and economic boundaries. To experience the full power of the Promises, young people must experience these critical supports throughout their lives — in their families, at schools and out in their communities.

Leadership

America’s Promise Alliance is guided by leaders from all sectors of American life: The business community; nonprofits, community groups, policymakers, experts in children’s and youth issues, concerned individuals and young people.

Our History

America’s Promise grew out of the Presidents’ Summit for America’s Future in 1997 where Presidents Clinton, Bush, Carter and Ford (with Nancy Reagan representing President Reagan), challenged America to make children and youth a national priority. Building on the legacy of Founding Chairman General Colin Powell, America's Promise is the leader in forging a strong and effective partnership alliance committed to seeing that children experience the Five Promises.

The 5 Promises

The 5 Promises represent conditions children need to achieve adult success. The collective work of the Alliance involves keeping these promises to America’s youth. This article relates to the promises highlighted below: