Increasing graduation rates is the goal of all schools. That’s why it makes sense for school districts to take a regional approach to the problem.
The first steps in that direction happened in a meeting held Wednesday when Joplin educators, business executives and school board members provided testimonials about Bright Futures, a program started in April and put in place at the Joplin School District.
Joplin’s goal is to raise its graduation rate to 87 percent within five years. Bright Futures teams business leaders and community volunteers with students in need of mentors. It’s just one of several approaches the district is taking to keeping students in school.
Bright Futures is being used as a tool to fight a growing problem in the Joplin community. There are students who don’t have enough food, proper clothing, shelter or a role model. Some of those problems are being addressed. We can see the difference in our community already.
Other school districts across the region attended the Wednesday meeting hoping to take back the blueprints of the plan to use in their towns.
Since the basis of the program is learning from each other, it’s only fitting that school districts adopt the same philosophy.
There is no magic bullet here, nor do we think Bright Futures is a substitute for a good teacher. It can’t take the place of studying on the part of the student, either.
But there is a role for all of us in laying the groundwork for success for our school districts. We hope others will take the program and run with it.
Opinion
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Opinion
Discussion
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