My grandparents survived the Great Depression, and I am hopeful that my generation will demonstrate the same endurance and innovation necessary to recover during these difficult economic times. That said, while our elected officials focus on balancing budgets and creating jobs, I believe we are losing focus on our greatest investment -- education.
A recent report from the Economic Policy Institute shows that investment in education is the best way to achieve faster economic growth, more jobs, greater productivity, and more widely shared prosperity. Yet many of our children are still getting a substandard education.
In 2008, eight percent of high school students in the U.S. dropped out of school. According to the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) Office of Performance, in 2010, 41 percent of all CPS high school students dropped out of school. Last month, Catalyst Chicago reported that Chicago schools were experiencing a 10 percent truancy rate and that 42,000 students miss a month or more of school. More than 55 percent of CPS dropouts are girls.
Well-educated girls grow into economically empowered women, and empowered women create healthier and more productive communities. Research shows that even the most basic primary education for girls raises a society's capacity for development. And in the U.S., education is a proven strategy for raising a family's income. A woman with a two-year associate's degree earns 28 percent more and a woman with a bachelor's degree earns 75 percent more than a woman with only a high school education.
As we brace for many years of economic recovery, we need to ensure that our children can survive the much tougher economic climate expected in 2011 and beyond. Any comprehensive recovery strategy must also include a well-funded school plan. Our next economic plan should include progressive taxes for schools and human services, incentives for professionals to become volunteers, new technology and employment pipelines that prepare youth as early as primary school for successful careers.
Children that are denied the best possible education that we can provide will never fully reach their potential, nor fully participate in our society. Over the coming months, as both our national elected officials and our local mayoral candidates discuss economic reform, please urge them to remember that education is an economic priority.