Introducing the Secondary School Reform Act

In yet another indication that North Carolina is becoming a key front in the battle to end the dropout epidemic, the Tar Heel State's own U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan is co-sponsoring a bill that would fund high school dropout prevention programs.

Calling the dropout crisis "one of the greatest threats to our country’s future economic prosperity," Hagan and fellow Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse introduced the Secondary School Reform Act on Thursday. They are hoping to tie its provisions to reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. 

If enacted, the bill would support the implementation of evidence-based education reform models across the country.

Hagan has also introduced the School Turnaround And Rewards Bill, which targets so-called "dropout factories" — schools that fail to graduate a significant number of their students.

Echoing fellow dropout warriors such as former West Virginia Gov. Bob Wise, Hagan has made a case for the economic imperative of ending the epidemic.

“In North Carolina, we understand that our economic strength is dependent on a well-educated, highly skilled workforce ready to compete in our global marketplace,” Hagan told The Charlotte Post. “Simply put, if you don’t have a high school diploma you are going to earn lower wages and obviously have fewer opportunities. The average annual income for a high school dropout is over $9,000 less than a student who has graduated from high school. And I just cannot, and we should not allow this disastrous trend to continue.”