GOP candidates miss opportunities to address dropout crisis

Conservative scholars and candidates have continually missed opportunities to offer constructive low-cost solutions to the high school dropout epidemic, James Marshall Crotty reports for Forbes.com.

This was especially true at last night’s GOP presidential debate on the economy and jobs at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, where a review of the transcript reveals that the words “education,” “dropouts” and “learning” were not mentioned once. 

While the candidates were busy discussing Herman Cain's 9-9-9 tax plan, they were overlooking how dropouts are a huge drain on tax revenues. Moreover, not one candidate made the obvious connection between an improved economy and ending the dropout epidemic.

Our two cents: Amen. 

Our third cent: It’s well past time for the nation’s dropout epidemic to become a central political issue upon which all leaders are expected to have clear plans based on research and experience.

Our fourth cent (man, we're approaching nickel territory here): The Democrats need to put their shoulder to the wheel on this issue, too. 

But make no mistake, there is no "9-9-9" plan for improving our education system. Winning this fight is going to take a lot of good ideas from a lot of good people — and a lot of hard work on top of that.