Will it take a Biblical effort to end Michigan's dropout epidemic?

The Nehemiah of the Hebrew Bible mobilized the citizens of Jerusalem to rebuild the ruined city walls.

His equivalent today might be Rev. Fred Thelen, pastor at Cristo Rey Catholic Church in Lansing, Mich.

Thelen is part of a coalition of church leaders who hope to galvanize community support to rebuild Michigan, brick by brick…

… or maybe student by student.

The “Nehemiah Assembly” has been formed “to really try to bring greater justice and equality,” Thelen told the Lansing State Journal.

And inextricably central to that fight, Thelen and the other religious leaders have agreed — is combatting the community’s dropout epidemic.

A quarter of high school students who began school in 2006 and were supposed to graduate in 2010 didn’t make it, according to the Lansing School District.

There is, of course, no silver bullet solution to this problem. But by recognizing the community’s role in the fight, Thelen and other leaders have taken a proactive first step that will support many disparate efforts to get students to graduation day.