Dropout crisis discussion at NEA RA echoes sentiments at Michigan hearings
Comments from national experts reaffirm community input captured at MEA-sponsored statewide hearings
Actor/activist/author Hill Harper addressed the crowd at Wednesday’s dropout crisis forum at the NEA RA in Washington, D.C. Listening on are NEA President Reg Weaver and John Quiñones of ABC News, who moderated the panel discussion.
WASHINGTON, July 2, 2008 — Recent MEA-sponsored hearings about the dropout crisis are far from the only effort going on in the United States to graduate more students from high school. On Wednesday, more than 500 NEA Representative Assembly delegates gathered to hear from national experts on the issue and share their thoughts and concerns as they experience this crisis from the front lines.
The panel of ethnic minority leaders was moderated by ABC News reporter John Quiñones and included television star Hill Harper of “CSI:NY,” who is also a noted education activist and author. The discussion, which was aired live on C-SPAN (requires Real Player), covered the range of issues that face students of all backgrounds, but especially ethnic minorities and the poor.
“The greatest cost and greatest loss are the thousands of dreams that die every day when a child gives up without getting a quality public education,” said NEA President Reg Weaver in his opening remarks. “These children aren’t falling through the cracks. They’re falling through a crater – a crater that swallows their future and threatens the future of the entire nation.”
Albion counselor Vivian Davis discusses the variety of issues that need to be tackled to stem the dropout crisis. These and other ideas are being heard as part of a series of dropout hearings across Michigan, the results of which will be presented to the policymakers this fall.
Ann Arbor elementary teacher Cheryl Ervin talks about the need to find out directly from students why they do or don’t drop out and reinforces the importance of relationships in education.
Weaver shared several facts with the gathered delegates that won’t surprise the hundreds who have attended the hearings conducted by the “Dropouts: One is Too Many” program thus far. Students who drop out are usually headed for a life of poverty and frequent unemployment. They are more likely to end up in penal system or on public assistance instead of getting good jobs and paying taxes.
A cycle of illiteracy, unemployment and poverty is a key factor, Weaver said. “If we want to break the cycle, we must begin to help children before they fall behind.”
The panel also reaffirmed the thoughts of many Michigan community members who’ve shared their thoughts at the dropout hearings – the need for the necessary resources to teach, for curriculums that are relevant to students, for more parental involvement, for investment in early childhood education, and for more meaningful adult relationships with students through increased mentoring and counseling.
Many Michigan delegates attended the discussion and related back what they heard Wednesday to the hearings this spring.
“Kids in danger of dropping out need special attention,” said Catherine Frederick, who attended the June 12 hearing in Flint. “We need to work with legislators and our community to get what we need to work with our students and get them that attention.”
Vivian Davis, an Albion school counselor, wants to make sure that these hearings help get the message out about how serious this crisis is.
“We’re hearing about this every day as we work with students. But are our principals hearing it? Are our administrators hearing it? Are our mayors hearing it?”
Learn more about the “Dropouts: One is Too Many” program, including upcoming hearings and an opportunity to testify online, visit www.mea.org/dropouts.
For more about NEA’s dropout prevention program, go to www.nea.org/dropout.
View the C-SPAN coverage.(requires Real Player)
It was standing-room only for more than 500 NEA RA delegates at a Wednesday panel discussion about the dropout crisis.