Parents & Students

Listed below are the common variables found in the research that identify potential dropouts:

• Fifteen Effective Strategies for Dropout Prevention
• Indicators of Potential Dropouts
• Web Resources for Those Who Want to Help Someone Stay in School

School districts all over the country provide alternative programs for students who are not successful in the usual school setting. The best programs in the country are featured in our Model Programs Database.

1. High school dropouts are four times as likely to be unemployed as those who have completed four or more years of college;
2. Graduating from high school will determine how well you live for the next 50 years of your life. High school graduates earn $143 more per week than high school dropouts. College graduates earn $336 more per week than high school graduates ($479 more per week than high school dropouts);
3. Dropouts are more likely to apply for and receive public assistance than graduates of high school;
4. Dropouts comprise a disproportionate percentage of the nation's prison and death row inmates.

Parents and Students Working Together to Stay in School

There is no one single answer, or silver bullet, to keeping students in school. The National Dropout Prevention Center has developed Fifteen Effective Strategies that help combat the dropout rate. Family involvement with the school and their children is vital.

• Reasons to Stay in School

• Help Someone Else Stay in School