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Every year, an estimated one in four girls drops out of high school — and the rates are even worse for girls of color.
Female dropouts face particularly steep economic consequences. As compared to their male peers, female dropouts have higher rates of unemployment, earn significantly lower wages, and are more likely to need to rely on public support programs to provide for their families.
NWLC's groundbreaking report, When Girls Don't Graduate, We All Fail: A Call to Improve High School Graduation Rates for Girls, found that one in four girls drops out of school, and that the numbers are even worse for girls of color. It also includes recommendations on how schools can help.
Ensuring Access to Education for Pregnant and Parenting Students
One-quarter to one-third of female dropouts say that pregnancy or becoming a parent played a role in their decision to leave school. Providing better support for pregnant and parenting students; together with implementing effective pregnancy prevention measures; are critical steps for schools to take in their efforts to reduce those dropout rates.
Listening to Latinas: Barriers to High School Graduation
Many Latinas face barriers to graduating from high school that are different from those faced by many of their counterparts. Our new report with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund addresses the challenges facing Latina students in the United States and suggests ways that schools and policymakers can address these obstacles to graduation. It also brings new voices to the conversation: those of young Latinas themselves and of adults who work with them.
Promising Practices
NWLC is working with schools, community organizations, and policy makers to identify "promising practices" that schools can use to keep pregnant, parenting, and other at-risk students from dropping out. Get examples of promising practices, and tell us about promising practices at work in your community.
NWLC is working to ensure that federal, state, and local governments address the dropout crisis and enact legislation to guarantee gender equality in education. View these policy resources.
Additional Resources
