High school dropout rate resources
About a fourth of Oregon students who were high school freshmen four years ago won’t receive any kind of diploma this spring. Dropout rates overall are lower than they were 20 years ago, but kids continue to give up on school at a time when living and succeeding require more formal education than ever.
School boards must continue to focus precious resources on programs that do the most good - teaching reading skills at an early age, ensuring that students learn problem-solving skills, and providing alternative programs when and if they are needed - so that fewer students become dropout statistics.
Other resources
The core and more - Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) comprehensive approach to dropout prevention.
Rights, Respect, & Responsibility - Teen Pregnancy: Can We Do Better? (618k 
) - Teen pregnancy and parenting is the leading reason that Oregon girls drop out of school, making it an issue that schools must contend with, in partnership with families and communities. This document from Healthy Kids Learn Better provides the most cost - and time- effective, research-based strategies for addressing teen pregnancy prevention in a school setting.
Oregon Department of Education's Dropout Page - Access the Department of Education's comparison of dropouts in grades 9 through 12 at the school, district, county and state levels and other dropout statistics.
Understanding Dropouts - Dropping out is not an isolated event, but a gradual process that begins long before a student actually leaves school, according to a National Academies' report (2001). Inadequate data prevent educators from early identification of at-risk students when intervention could make a difference. Read the summary or order the full report.
Reducing the Dropout Rate - Part of the School Improvement Research Series (SIRS) produced by the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory. Insights about risk factors and what works and doesn't.
Improving Elementary School Climate - Part of the School Improvement Research Series (SIRS) produced by the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory. A look at Bonneville Elementary School in Pocatello, Idaho.
Effective Schooling Practices and At Risk Youth: What the Research shows - More of the School Improvement Research Series (SIRS) produced by the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory. Do the normal techniques and procedures used in most schools work with at-risk youth?