The Hill News

The nation’s op-ed pages are filled with passionate voices advocating for one cause or another, representing the many challenges we face: the economy, national security, gas prices and healthcare to just name a few. It’s hard to imagine one issue transcending or touching all others, but there is such an issue: The education of our young people.

With the end of the school year near, I hope all Americans, especially members of Congress, will reflect on the role education plays in this country. We must pay special attention to the 1.3 million students who will not graduate this year because they dropped out of high school, along with the 2.1 million students that haven’t yet left, but attend low-performing schools where their chance of graduating is practically a coin toss. It’s estimated that one class of dropouts costs the nation $337 billion in lost lifetime earnings and subsequent taxes. Revenue we can hardly afford to turn away.

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