Junior Achievement: A Solution to the Dropout Crisis

A recent research article created by Junior Achievement showed that each year only 70 percent of expected students earn a high school diploma. This issue is impacting these students’ lives along with the strength of our country’s economy. Junior Achievement USA provides several solutions to increase the percentage of high school students who graduate with a diploma. JA helps students connect what they are learning in school to the real world. 91 percent of teachers and volunteers agree that JA programs bridge this learning gap between the classroom and the outside world. Junior Achievement programs also help students understand the importance of an education and increase their self-confidence. In comparison to their peers, JA students were significantly more confident that they would not only graduate from high school but continue to pursue post-secondary education.

In addition to providing relevant and useful curriculum to students, Junior Achievement offices are piloting in-depth initiatives that aim to directly reduce the drop out rate of students in high risk districts.

It’s that time of year again!

As administrators and teachers are gearing up for the 2010-2011 school year, we at Junior Achievement are also preparing for another successful year. JA programs will be up and running in mid to late September. Please contact Laura Clingman at lclingman@jafortworth.org if you are interested in volunteering in a local classroom this year.

We look forward to working with all of our outstanding schools and volunteers this year!