The "Drop 50 Pledge" is a grassroots social activism and media drive conducted with social activist and syndicated talk show host Rob Nelson to create a nationwide movement that challenges politicians to commit to a pledge to lower the dropout rate by at least 50% over the next 5 years!
The Mayor of Los Angeles took the Pledge. Not at a carefully staged press event or in front of powerful special interests, but at a south Los Angeles, Department of Water and Power staging plant before 150 concerned citizens gathered to discuss how he should spend his last three years in office. Pledging to cut the city's school dropout rate by 50 percent, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa committed to a measurable result, a bottom line--not just a strategy--exactly the kind of commitment that needs to happen in cities across America. In making his pledge, Mayor Villaraigosa emphasized he'd need help. We at Right to Succeed agree. It's not enough to hold just him accountable. We all need to be held accountable.
The Right to Succeed "Drop 50 Pledge" is one way to take action. Our hope is that it will be a catalyst for communities all across America to mobilize and create a real and unyielding demand for change. The Pledge alone won't fix our schools, but it can lay the groundwork for a movement that has the power to do so.
Drop 50 Pledge is supported by individuals, companies, community organizations, and foundations who are are committed to cutting the drop out rate in half over the next 5 years.
See the Right to Succeed cause video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abKuvZco42Q
We the undersigned would like you to take the Drop 50 Pledge---a pledge to cut the drop out rate by 50% in the next 5 years within your community and state.
Today, half of America's kids are failing to make it through middle and high school, and of those who make it into college, fewer than half graduate. This means that only 25% of young people have minimal academic skills. Fewer still have competitive 21st century career and life skills. This trend, if continued, projects that just one generation from now, as many as 75% of Americans will be fighting poverty.
This is too high! Please pledge to cut the Drop Out rate in half over the next 5 years!
Thank you for taking time to read this letter!
