Gov. Culver weighs in on change in drop out age

This morning I am listening to WHO radio and discussion on Jan Mickelson as to the topic of raising the age students can drop out of high school to age 18. There is much discussion going on via the radio and in the newspaper. Gov. Culver is speaking out on this potential change and is “for it all the way.”

I am sharing a newspaper article hoping that Iowa taxpayers will be heads up to the continued discussion on what Culver describes as an “easy step” to legislate a change in the drop out rate. Many Iowans will have personal experience with the topics of high school, teenagers, school systems, what is being taught and how teaching is being done, and more! This is surely an issue that Iowans will want to ponder and then communicate their opinions with their Representatives in the Iowa Legislature.

http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2008/01/18/news/iowa/57f16f6ef65fd966862573d40009e286.txt

By Whitney Woodward Journal Des Moines Bureau | Posted: Friday, January 18, 2008

DES MOINES — Teens would be forbidden from dropping out of school before they’re 18 years old under a proposal in the Iowa House that Gov. Chet Culver backed Thursday.

“Our dropout rate is too high,” Culver said. “One reason kids drop out is because they’re allowed to under the current law.”

State law currently requires teens who are younger than 16 on Sept. 15 to complete that academic year before they can legally leave school. Many lawmakers say they’d like to require teens to stay in school until they become legal adults on their 18th birthdays.

“Does a 16-year-old kid know about what’s best for his future?” Rep. Deborah Berry, D-Waterloo, said. “At that age, you can’t make that kind of decision for yourself.”

There are roughly 1,100 dropouts between the ages of 16 and 18 in Iowa, Department of Education official Jeff Berger said.

If the compulsory attendance age was upped to 18, those considering dropping out would likely be high school seniors mere months away from graduation.

Supporters said that mandating students stay in school will keep them out of trouble and help them lead productive lives.

In November a special bipartisan committee addressed Iowa’s looming skilled worker shortage and concluded that increasing graduation rates would help strengthen the state’s labor force.

“We’re dealing in a knowledge economy, so it’s so important that these children be educated,” Rep. Doris Kelley, D-Waterloo, said. “With the job market right now, unless a student or a young person has a high school degree or graduated from a university, there aren’t very many opportunities for them.”

The governor, an official with the Department of Education and many Republican and Democratic lawmakers said they support the plan. To become law, the proposal would have to be approved by the Legislature and signed by Culver.

Although a similar plan stalled in the Statehouse last year, lawmakers said they’re optimistic this time around because officials have expressed an elevated interest in education issues.

“I think it does have renewed life,” said House Education Committee Chair Rep. Roger Wendt, D-Sioux City.

But lawmakers have yet to develop an enforcement mechanism to punish teens who leave school underage.

Under the eyes of the law, a student is considered truant if they drop out before they’re 16, but few county attorneys take formal action on the teens because they’re so young, Berger said. So, increasing the minimum dropout age without providing a punishment for breaking the law may have little effect on attendance.

“There isn’t a lot of recourse if a kid is intent on not being in school. It’s pretty hard to keep them there,” Berger said.

But Rep. Lisa Heddens, D-Ames, said the state must encourage students to be productive members of society, beginning with requiring them to go to school.

“We’re a state that puts a high emphasis on education,” Heddens said. “I think this (proposal) shows just how much we value education.”