General Motors Foundation donates $27.1 million to help raise graduation rates

The General Motors Foundation is donating $27.1 million to the United Way for Southeastern Michigan with the goal of dramatically increasing graduation rates — and ultimately rebuilding the area’s skilled workforce.

The donation is the largest ever in the 34-year history of the foundation, and comes at a time in which some parts of Detroit — particularly those where the most manufacturing jobs have been lost in recent years — are suffering from dropout rates as high as 50 percent.

Under the terms of the donation, a "Network of Excellence" organization will choose five high schools from which to create up to 20 academies, along with establishing five Early Learning Communities to help get young children ready for kindergarten.

The program mirrors an earlier effort that began with five schools in 2008. After the first year of that program, 83 percent of the students were on track to graduate, according to the United Way.