Definition of Problem or Issue Education Inequality

Social Issue A social issue is a problem that influences a considerable amount of people in a society. Education inequality Education inequality is a huge problem that the world, as a whole, faces; but it is especially evident between different ethnicities within American public schools. Our group will be tackling a specific issue dealing with this social disparity.

Current Situation & Our Main Concern Despite the improving national graduation rates, minority students still trail behind their peers in finishing school and their rates have actually worsened while the overall rate has improved. Our Main Concern: Why are dropout rates so high within black and hispanic/latino students in Denver Public Schools?

Related Data: In Denver Public Schools specifically, hispanic/latinos make up 57.5% of the student population and black students make up 14.1%, with a combined rate of 71.6%. Only 55% of those hispanic/latino students and 64% of black students in these schools are graduating. This has a detrimental effect on Denver Public Schools as a whole because it drops the graduation rate as whole, to only 61%.

Why Minority Students Dropout of High School? Lack of support from teachers, family and friends Inability or decision to not pursue a college degree or a trade school following high school, resulting in the question of why should they continue to study instead of getting a job immediately. Need to support their family financially alongside parents and siblings

Our Thoughts: By targeting these common issues that high school students face, and helping to resolve them, we believe that the dropout rate in minorities in particular will be reduced. In order to do so, we would pair with Denver Public Schools to discover the best way to implement supportive roles to assist students who are considering withdrawing from high school.