Investing in the Whole Child

Upward mobility and opportunity have long been the hallmarks of American society, as generation after generation have surpassed their parents’ achievements. But declining high school graduation rates threaten this progress. America’s Promise Alliance and its policy affiliate, First Focus, believe that schools and communities must work together with families to meet students’ needs inside and outside of the classroom, to ensure that students are not just smart but strong citizens as well.

As a nation, the holistic needs of children must be paramount in our focus, so that American students are healthy and safe at school, so we can ensure that they are productive after school, and so they have opportunities to grow as students and as individuals. The challenge of educating our students must not fall to schools alone; the whole community must be engaged.

At the federal level, the advancement of bipartisan polices that build community-wide alliances for kids should be considered – involving not only government, but business, families, the faith community, service providers, and youth themselves. Strong alliances will be able to address not only graduation and other traditional education priorities, but also health care, public safety, and other critical needs facing our kids.

As Congress moves toward consideration of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, incentives for closer school and community collaborations should be a renewed priority, as they are largely left out of the existing law. Such partnerships will more effectively leverage community resources and coordinate support services to meet students’ needs – keeping them on the path toward graduation.

Indeed, the president’s proposed budget is simply that - a proposal. Now, education advocates, policymakers and those candidates for president have an obligation to convince lawmakers of the importance of programs where investments in kids could facecuts. Making it harder for children to access services providing healthcare, educational assistance, mental health treatment, and many other needs fail to acknowledge many of the hardships children are facing in today’s society. We must acknowledge the importance of investing in our children.

Marguerite Kondracke is President and CEO of America’s Promise Alliance, the nation’s largest multi-sector collaborative dedicated to the well-being of children and youth.