How To: Host Your Own Drop-Out Prevention Summit

Does your high school have a high drop-out rate? A Dropout Prevention Summit brings this problem to people’s attention and, secures a commitment from leaders to act, and most importantly, results in plans to help more young people graduate. Hold your own Drop-Out Prevention Summit in your school.

1. Research your local or statewide dropout rates.
2. Decide on your Goals. Decide what you want to accomplish. Ask yourself:
   • Do you have a plan to share?
   • Will you use people’s ideas in the summit to make a plan together?
   • How will you determine that your summit worked?
3. Get community leaders together. Create a committee by calling up and inviting:
   • other young people
   • school representatives
   • PTA members
   • business leaders
   • the mayor
   • law enforcement officials
   • public service organizations
   • national organizations
4. Ask your committee about resources. What is a young person missing that would keep them in school? Ask about things like:
   • tutoring services
   • afterschool activities sports, arts, community service)
     • sports
     • the arts
     • clubs
   • drug or mental health counseling
5. Plan your presentation. Make an outline considering:
   • who in the committee will present which facts
   • what additional experts will your committee invite to speak?
   • what you ask the community to do
6. Set a date, time, and place. Ask members of your committee if they can offer a space. Choose a time when most people in your community can attend, like the weekend.
7. Invite the community. Especially focus on at-risk students, their parents, and professionals who have access to programs that you want to improve.
8. Present your idea. With your research and expert team, people are bound to listen!

For more information on Drop-Out Prevention Summits, visit Americaspromise.org