[Filed with Secretary of State September 10, 2015.]
ACR 96, Weber. Dropout Recovery Month.
This measure would declare the month of August 2015 as Dropout Recovery Month, and would state that the Legislature intends to encourage the support of dropout recovery high schools with creative teaching strategies, alternative accountability metrics, and adequate resources.
WHEREAS, The 2013 and 2014 Building a Grad Nation reports found that the nation cannot achieve its graduation goals without increasing California’s graduation rate for Latino and African American pupils; and
WHEREAS, The America’s Promise Alliance found, in 2014, that pupils drop out of high school because they are overwhelmed by the effects of toxic living conditions such as homelessness, violent surroundings, abuse or neglect, and catastrophic family health events; and
WHEREAS, The California Dropout Research Project found, in 2008, that approximately 20 percent of the variability in dropout rates can be attributed to key characteristics in schools, including the resources, policies, and practices at schoolsites; and
WHEREAS, Research by the Alliance for Excellent Education concludes that if only one-half of the dropouts from a single year were to earn a diploma, the economic benefits to California would include an additional $1.4 billion in earnings annually for the reengaged pupils and an annual increase in state and local tax revenues of $167 million; and
WHEREAS, Research further shows that reengaged learners demonstrate higher levels of civic engagement, contribute to the cultural strength of their communities, and are significantly less likely to be unemployed, on public assistance, or arrested for a violent crime; and
WHEREAS, Research by WestEd demonstrates the challenges faced by schools seeking to reengage dropouts in that one-half of the dropouts who return to school stay for one year or less, one-third of returning dropouts fail to complete even one course after they reenroll, and as few as 18 percent of returning dropouts graduate; and
WHEREAS, Successful dropout recovery high schools in California are operating under Section 47612.1 of the Education Code in partnership with federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act organizations, the California Conservation Corps, and other federal and state career technical education partners to provide significant social, economic, and academic benefits for their pupils and for California’s population as a whole; and
WHEREAS, Research calls for alternative strategies and accountability metrics for demonstrating the success of dropout recovery programs, including accelerated learning pedagogies, competency-based instruction, inclusion of noncognitive indicators, and alternative graduation rate cohorts; and
WHEREAS, These successful dropout recovery high schools attract and retain high-quality staff committed to transforming their pupils from being at risk of failure to being at promise of success; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby declares the month of August 2015 as Dropout Recovery Month, in honor of the schools and staff who work to reengage pupils who have previously dropped out of school, and in honor of the pupils who overcome significant personal challenges to reengage in high school and become transformed learners in preparation for college and a future career; and be it further
Resolved, That the Legislature intends to encourage the support of dropout recovery high schools with creative teaching strategies, alternative accountability metrics, and adequate resources; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
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