By Superintendent Daniel Warwick—-
The national high school dropout rate has reached a record low and improvements in districts like Springfield Public Schools are driving the trend.
In a recent article, the Pew Research Center stated the decline in the national dropout rate has been driven, in part, by substantially fewer black and Hispanic youth dropping out of school. Black and Hispanic children make up more than 80 percent of the Springfield Public Schools student body. We are proud of the gains our students have made academically, outpacing the state for two years in a row. We are especially proud about the decrease in our dropout rate, going from 10.5 in 2009 to 6.5 in 2013.
Director of Student Support Services Dr. Yolanda D. Johnson and her team are among those who have done great work re-engaging students who were at risk of dropping out, and, in some cases, students who had already dropped out. A sustained effort by many has resulted in several prevention initiatives. Based on extensive research and analysis, the initiatives were launched to provide supports for students who need it.
The initiatives include, but are not limited to, an extensive review of all student records with an eye towards drop out indicators. For example, excessive absences are one indicator of a student’s risk for quitting school. The review becomes even more concentrated at the high school level where we have created 9th and 10th grade academies to intervene with special supports for struggling students. We have eliminated the fee associated with summer and night school, making it free and thereby more accessible for all students who need extra support to move on. We have also started a credit recovery program where students who have fallen behind can make up their credits via online curriculums.
In Springfield, we are blessed to have a community that values education and is committed to helping to make a brighter future for our kids. Spearheaded by Dora Robinson, the United Way of Pioneer Valley is one of those organizations. Their launch last year of the community-wide Stay-In-School initiative has played an important part in helping to improve the district’s student attendance rate. Nationally, the data tells us that an improvement in student attendance is often accompanied by higher graduation rates.
Recently, the United Way hosted an Education Summit. Springfield native Michael D. Smith, a special assistant to President Obama and the president’s Brother’s Keeper initiative, was keynote speaker. Those in attendance thoughtfully considered the challenges students face and will work in coming weeks to write an action plan with strategies the entire community can take part in.
I look forward to those partnerships. As the nation recognizes the positive developments in our public education system, so should we and we should continue to work together to build on that success. ■