High School Dropout Age – New Hampshire, Massachusetts

State may study how N.H. cut dropouts, By James Vaznis, April 18, 2011, Boston Globe: “As Massachusetts considers raising its dropout age to 18, a similar measure enacted in New Hampshire has cut that state’s dropout rate nearly in half in its first year. The Granite State’s dropout rate has tumbled to just under 1 percent for the last school year, from 1.7 percent the previous year, when 16- and 17-year-olds could quit school without earning a diploma. ‘What we’ve done is set a goal for all students to graduate and it really has been embraced at the local level,’ said New Hampshire Governor John Lynch, who wants the dropout rate at zero by the 2012-13 school year. ‘Every school principal, teacher, and other educator is focused on how to keep students in school and find programs for them that keeps them motivated.’ Massachusetts officials say they want to find out more about New Hampshire’s strategy as they try to reduce the Bay State’s dropout rate, which has held steady at 2.9 percent for the past two years. Some cities, such as Holyoke, Lawrence, and Springfield, have rates three times higher than the state average…”