BoostUp, one of the Ad Council’s programs that focuses on dropout prevention reports that 4 out of every 10 high school students in America don’t graduate from high school.  At the completion of the 2007-08 academic year in Virginia, approximately eighteen percent of 97,007 students, that were supposed to be on-time graduates, did not earn a diploma.  At this rate, it doesn’t appear that we will likely reach ambitious NCLB goals in just 4 to 5 short years. Community members, parents, educators, political leaders and others must decide to be a part of the solution and act aggressively! 

No one wants to fail, dropout or be unsuccessful.  The reality of life happens and young people often feel compelled to make a decision based upon the short-term rather than the long-term solution.  As stakeholders, we must identify when and how the road begins to turn for so many young people that don’t complete high school successfully.  Once the pitfalls and potholes along the K-12 educational journey have been identified, we must change those things that must and can be changed immediately.

The solution to addressing the nation’s dropout problem doesn’t involve a magic wand, Aladdin’s Lamp or silver bullet.  As a new doctoral student at Virginia Tech, I would like to identify practical solutions that effectively address a targeted issue that causes young people to take “dead end” detours along their educational journey.

Teaching “cyberethics” is not an insurmountable task.  It is a lesson that can be taught at home, in school and the community.  Most school divisions have an acceptable use policy that can address appropriate Internet use.  Guidance counselors can also provide direction on how to avoid and respond to bullying.  Parents are encouraged to maintain an open relationship with their children while monitoring Internet sites that are frequently visited.  Many children will avoid telling their parents about a cyberbullying incident in fear that their parent will only make matters worse.  Thus, open communication is critical! 

The media and other community outlets should be applauded for their awareness, prevention and intervention efforts.  Please join me teaching our youth to make responsible choices when texting, surfing the web, posting to a personal profile or when chatting online.  Posted below is an example of a community service announcement this has recently aired on national television.