Effectively tracking high school dropouts poses a problem for schools, districts, and states because many at-risk students are transient; it is hard to keep track of these students as they move from school to school, program to program, and even state to state. However, no matter what the precise number is, the high school dropout rate in America is simply too high. Numerous studies bring to life the negative consequences of dropping out of school for both the individual and society as a whole. Dropout Prevention: A Program That Works will not detail such consequences; rather, it will provide a roadmap for schools and districts that want to and must implement an effective dropout prevention program in order to best serve students. The following analogy stresses the importance of implementing an effective dropout prevention program immediately: When an obese person has a heart attack and is taken to the emergency room, the hospital first sends in the doctor to sustain the patient and try to save his life. The hospital does not first call in a nutritionist to discuss the patient's poor diet and lack of exercise. Currently, there are thousands of high school students dying on the ER table listening to a nutritionist.Too often educators say, "I need to see the research supporting that program" before they are willing to implement. But how much research is necessary? Is it enough to see an effective program at another school? Or do you need to have multiple longitudinal studies documenting the results before you are willing to act? How many more students will drop out of your school before you finally declare, "We have to do something"? Research is vital; however, research is not implementation. Many at-risk students simply cannot wait for the research to be conducted and the data compiled: they are on the ER table and need an alternative solution today. Dropout Prevention: A Program That Works provides such a solution.
About the Author: Marc Barlow has always shouldered the burden for at-risk youth. This burden has found Marc searching for ways to better serve and support such students. From working with socially promoted freshmen to being the director of summer camps for children in the foster care system to establishing a Resource Center in his community and at his school to finally implementing an effective dropout prevention program, Marc has shared his knowledge, experience, and passion with others in order that they too can make a difference in these young people's lives. As a veteran educator of fifteen years, Marc has quickly become one of the nation's leading experts in implementing schoolwide intervention systems that support Response to Intervention (RTI) in secondary schools. Through his leadership and ability to make a vision a reality, and experience in Title I, Administration, Pupil Services, Team Teaching, Regular and Alternative Education, and New Teacher Training and Assessment, Marc has spearheaded numerous initiatives that have led to higher student achievement and retention. Along with implementing schoolwide intervention systems that support the RTI model in secondary schools, Marc has implemented an effective dropout prevention program that has helped schools retain, acquire, and graduate more and more at-risk students.