03/08/2011
https://www.congress.gov...
"Research shows that the middle grades are a critical time to influence whether students graduate from high school."
"I commend the outstanding work that you are doing on behalf of the American people and on this critical piece of domestic policy, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act."
"Without question, among the most serious challenges is the high dropout rate in the United States."
"Each year, 1.2 million students drop out of school; that's about 7,000 per day."