It’s that time of year again.

“What youth really need is that main person they can actually talk to…to be comfortable and open up to and let that one person know about their life.” That’s powerful insight from a young man, just 21 years-old, named Nico. His statement captures the essence of mentoring – a deliberate relationship between an adult and a young person where the most important factor is that the adult consistently shows up for the young person and listens.

As I listen to the stories of Paul, Shanaye, Kassandra, Denise and the other young people profiled in the “Don’t Call Them Dropouts” documentary, I am reminded of the contagious passion and aspiration that is present in our next generation of leaders.

The recent release of federal data showing the U.S. high school graduation rate has hit 80 percent is fantastic news. For the first time in our nation’s history, 4 out of 5 students earned a high school diploma within four years of beginning 9th grade. That’s huge. If this rate is upheld, we could see a 90 percent graduation rate by 2020. That would be momentous.

While it may not appear so at first reading, there is some truly hopeful and promising news presented in the newly released report Don’t Call Them Dropouts:  Understanding the Experiences of Young Peo

I’d like to share just a few reflections on George HW Bush on his birthday.

How do you pay tribute to one who has given so much of himself in service to our Nation? We humbly pay tribute to you, President Bush, on your 90th birthday with a service project that benefits those

According to the recent 2014 Building a GradNation report from America's Promise, the United States has reached an 80 percent high school graduation rate for the first time in history. Truly an accomplishment we need to celebrate!

It’s been more than 400 years since Shakespeare pondered that question in Romeo and Juliet, yet it continues to have an unexpected resonance in public education today. If you need proof, just take a look at “Don’t Call Them Dropouts,” a major new study from America’s Promise Alliance and its Center for Promise at Tufts University.

This is the time of year when all over America, family and friends are celebrating the accomplishments of students who have taken a significant step in preparing for their future – earning a high school diploma. As much as we commend them for their hard work, we also need to realize that at every graduation ceremony taking place at thousands of high schools from coast-to-coast, each of the graduating classes should be larger.

Growing up in the bayou of Louisiana certainly conjures images of a fertile, gumbo-esque estuary.

It’s hard to think of the America’s Promise Alliance’s Five Promises without getting past the first promise: Caring Adults.  In many ways, it’s the cornerstone of everything that we do here.