Grady Talks and Graduation Rates

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Aug 232011
 

Grady Talks is a growing group of Atlanta business professionals who are committed to helping high school students get career-focused.  Some  have suggested that getting career-focused may increase a student’s chance of finishing school.
  
Along the way we learned about the problem of high dropout rates, especially among minority students.   We read that the leading cause of dropping out is the feeling that “Classes are Not Interesting.”  And, we’ve heard frustration that there has been no consistency in the way numbers are reported.

Here are were things are in Georgia.  We found that there are three common ways to compute graduation rates.

Georgia used the lever rate to calculate the numbers and the Governor has praised the 80.8% rate released last October.  But now, the state has changed their reporting method to be consistant with other states and some fear the new graduation rate will not look as favorable.

 Posted by at 12:53 pm

Who Shares our Mission to Get Kids Career-Focused and Reduce Dropout Rates?

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Aug 182011
 

Grady Talks is about helping kids get on a meaningful career path and stay in school.   Who else in Georgia is doing the same thing?

http://www.cisga.org/

We found this group,  Communities In Schools of Georgia, who’s mission states that “Every Child Needs and Deserves: -A personal, one-on-one relationship with a caring adult -A safe place to learn and grow -A healthy start and a healthy future -A marketable skill to use upon graduation -A chance to give back”.

The national organization, Communities In Schools, says they are “the United States’ largest dropout prevention organization”.

http://www.mattiecstewart.org/

Another group, The Mattie C. Stewart Foundation,  says they are “helping to reduce the dropout rate and increase the graduation rate in communities across the United States”.

Do you know any other organizations who focus on high school student achievement?

http://www.gadoe.org

We were able to find some recent data  from Georgia Department of Education about gradution rates at Grady and Atlanta Public Schools.  Grady seemed to have done well in 2010 with a 91.6% graduation rate.     

A closer look at the chart below reveals why the APS rate is down at 63.3%.   It seems that troubled students often transfer to another school before graduation and thus don’t get scored against the school’s graduation rate.

Stats from 2009-2010 School Year:

School Name Graduation Class Size Graduation Rate
Early College High School at Carver 65 98.5
South Atlanta School of Health and Medical Science 52 82.7
Mays High School 321 90.3
Maynard H. Jackson, Jr. High School 192 80.2
North Atlanta High School 235 85.1
Tech High School 55 89.1
South Atlanta Law and Social Justice School 50 84.0
School of Technology at Carver 71 97.2
School of Health Sciences and Research at Carver 102 87.3
South Atlanta School of Computer Animation and Design 50 84.0
The School of the Arts at Carver 70 98.6
Therrell School of Law, Government and Public Policy 67 68.7
Therrell School of Engineering, Math, and Science 65 73.8
Therrell School of Health and Science 64 64.1
Crim High School 694 12.8
Douglass High School 336 77.7
Grady High School 322 91.6
Washington High School Senior Academy 283 81.6
All Schools 3201 66.3
 Posted by at 3:35 pm

What is Grady Talks doing for the 2011-2012 School Year?

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Aug 152011
 

Have you ever met a high school student who doesn’t have an idea what they want to be when they grow up?  According to a recent NPR News special, boredom and pregnancy are the top reasons kids drop out of school.   Also, we’ve found that some students do have a solid direction, but have no idea the pathway to achieving their dream.   

Grady Talks is an organization of business leaders who want to share their stories in the hope of inspiring high school students to get on a meaningful career path.  Thus far, over 2 dozen Grady Talks speakers have presented their advice and inspiration to Grady students.  We’ve recorded each talk for you to view and freely share at:

http://vimeo.com/gradytalks

In the next couple of weeks, we’ll begin to schedule the speakers for 18 new talks for the coming school year.  Our hope is to videotape as many of these talks as we can afford.

We’ve also scheduled 18 classes on “career-pathing”,  8 lunchtime mini-talks in the school’s career center,  and monthly coaching for a dozen students hand-picked by one the Grady Academy leaders.  

If you would like to be a speaker or get involved in one of our committees, please contact liz@gradytalks.com.

If you have a life story that you thinks students should hear, you can make a comment on this post!

Please follow and “Like” us on Facebook at:  http://facebook.com/gradytalks

 Posted by at 2:14 pm

Denis Brosnan: Pay It Forward

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Aug 122011
 
Denis Brosnan, CEO of Prommis Solutions, Inc.,  tells  students at Atlanta’s Grady High School the secret of how we rise up step by step in our lives and how you can help others climb up the ladder of success.

Denis says that whatever success he’s had in his life has a lot to do with self-confidence. He explains that whatever your challenge may be, confidence helps you achieve it. Confidence allows you to accomplish your goals.
He explains that words have power, if you tell yourself that you can do, you can. Also, perception counts, if you walk around upset or angry, no will want to be around you. Finally, he reminds students that success is incremental, you have to believe that you can do things, and then go one step at a time.

Here’s an excerpt:

 Posted by at 2:36 pm

Jeff Reeves: On Not Being a Knucklehead

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Aug 112011
 

On Claudio Sanchez’s NPR piece about dropouts,  Claudio mentions that pregnancy is the leading reason girls drop out from high school.  Why do you think boys drop out an even greater rate?

Recently, as part of Grady Talks, Jeff Reeves, former Seattle Seahawks football player, business executive, and author of The Art of Branding Yourself: How to Advance your Career Quickly talked to a group of high school students about their future.

Jeff tells Grady High School students not let other define who they are. He talks about responsibility, making good choices and building your brand.

Here’s an exerpt:

 Posted by at 4:45 pm

Dave Walker: What’s the best and worst thing about high school graduation?

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Aug 082011
 

When Atlanta business attorney,  Dave Walker spoke to the new 9th grade class at Grady High School last week, he asked, What’s the best and the worst thing about graduating from high school?   He suggests that the longer you stay in school, the older and wiser  you’ll be before you have to compete with even older people who are trying to answer the same question as you, “how are you going to put money into your bank account”? 

Here’s little clip from his presentation:

http://bit.ly/nAnHwb

 Posted by at 2:42 pm

Dave Walker and Jeff Johnson Inspire Grady High 9th Graders

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Aug 062011
 

Do you remember your first day at High School?  For me, 9th grade didn’t come easy as the “Apathy Class”, as we were soon to be called, lacked direction and inspiration.

The new ninth graders at Grady High School are certainly more fortunate that I was.  Today, two members of the Grady Talks Project, Dave Walker and Jeff “JJ” Johnson delivered inspirational talks to a packed auditorium of new students.  They talked to the kids about their future and challenged them to think about the day when they will be responsible for themselves.    Dave challenged the student to take a serious interest in their finances and JJ shared his endless enthusiasm and optimism.

To see the video of the talk, go here:  http://bit.ly/nLd2RU

From where you are now in your career, what message would you want new ninth graders to hear?  Did you know that 9th grade is the most common year when students drop out of school?   Any idea why?

Dave Walker and Jeff Johnson Talk to Grady High 9th Graders from Grady Talks on Vimeo.

Aug. 5th, 2011

On new student orientation day at Grady High School in Atlanta, business attorney David Walker and TV Personality Jeff “JJ” Johnson address the new freshman class. They offer words of encouragement and talk about personal responsibility. They spoke on behalf of Grady Talks, Liz Liebemran’s organization that provides students with career advice from business professional..

 Posted by at 3:12 am

Jeff Johnson to Deliver the Grady Talks Opening Address Friday

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Aug 042011
 

Yesterday, Liz got an email from one of the senior people at Grady High School, looking for a a last minute speaker for freshman orientation day.  The email came in while she happened to be on the phone with Atlanta TV personality Jeff Johnson, who instantly said “yes” he’d do it.  She and I are pretty proud of our start up organization, Grady Talks! Have you ever been able to solve a problem that quickly?

So now, Grady Talks will be providing the motivational speaker for the new student orientation Friday August 5th, at Grady High School and I’ll get to video tape this one and post in online.

Want to see last years kick-off talk by basketball legend, Chris Webber?  Follow this link:  http://bit.ly/qDR5bf.

Liz has a bunch of business professionals lined up to deliver talks to a class this Fall at Grady.  They will be telling stories from their work experiances and help the kid get focused on a successful career.

Interested in talking to a class of 30 high school kids about the lessons that you have learned?  I’m sure Liz would love to talk with you about it.  Say, what’s the biggest lesson that you’ve learned while on the job?  For me, it’s that if you put together a team, you have a better chance of getting what you are looking for.

Here are some excerpts from Jeff’s talk  last school year:

 Posted by at 3:40 pm
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