Oregon high school dropout rate drops to lowest in a decade

Oregon high school dropout rate drops to lowest in a decade

by Bill Graves, The Oregonian

Stephanie Yao Long/The Oregonian Elfego Sanchez, 19, helps third-graders, including Gloria Martinez (right) at Gaffney Lane Elementary with reading as part of his senior project for Oregon City High. He returned to school this year after dropping out last spring and is on track to graduate. He now is considering going to college and becoming a teaching assistant. “The kids respond so well to him,” said teacher Karen Hankins.

Oregon’s dropout rate fell last year to an all-time low, in part because of better school options focused on kids in danger of quitting, state officials reported Wednesday.

A total 6,678 high school students – enough to fill three big schools — quit in 2007-08. That amounts to 3.7 percent of Oregon’s high school population, a decline from the previous year’s 4.2 percent dropout rate and the lowest level since the state started tracking dropouts nearly 20 years ago.

Dropout rates varied widely across the state. Portland’s rate remained the highest in the metro area, at 8.4 percent. By contrast, the West Linn-Wilsonville School District nearly eradicated its dropout rate, reducing it to 0.9 percent. Rates fell to 1.4 percent in Oregon City and 1.3 percent in Lake Oswego.

At 2,200-student Oregon City Senior High, educators have dramatically reduced the dropout rate to 25 students, or 1.1 percent, down from 5 percent three years ago. Elfego Sanchez, 19, was one of those dropouts, but he is back at Oregon City High and on track to graduate this spring. He left school as a junior a year ago to visit his ill grandmother in Mexico. He also “was confused with school and work,” he said.

Oregon school-by-school guide of test scores and state and federal ratings that include graduation and dropout rates. Read more

Severn Cullis-Suzuki

Interview with Severn Cullis-Suzuki, international ambassador for rare

Severn Suzuki speaking at UN Earth Summit 1992

Raised in Vancouver and Toronto, Severn Cullis-Suzuki has been camping and hiking all her life. When she was 9 she started the Environmental Children’s Organization (ECO), a small group of children…

Severn Cullis-Suzuki Keynote Address

Daughter of famed Canadian scientist, David Suzuki, Severn Cullis-Suzuki developed a deep connection to nature at an early age. In this lecture, she discusses her personal evolution as an environmentalist as well as reminding us that we have become so ‘disconnected’ from the natural world — that unequivocally sustains us — that our arrogance and ignorance has put us on the brink of planetary disaster. She provokes us to consider our individual consumptive impact on the planet and to explore ways to reduce our personal ecological footprint. © 2006 Lazarus Productions«

Welcome to the ManyHands Community!

Welcome to the ManyHands Community!