Local school officials say worsening economic problems in the last decade are adversely impacting student success and likely played a role in last year’s 63.5 percent increase in the Wilkes County high school dropout rate.
The dropout rate rose from 1.71 in the 2013-14 school year to 2.68 in 2014-15. Last year’s rate was the highest since 3.50 in 2009-10 and the first increase since 2008-09.
“The economic problems that families are facing (in Wilkes) are huge,” said April Marr, director of student services for the Wilkes schools.
About 22 percent of children in Wilkes lived in poverty in 2005, two years before the recession officially began. Although the recession officially ended in 2007, about 32 percent of Wilkes children lived poverty in 2013. (The data is from the Census Bureau.)
Marr said the stress on parents and guardians from unemployment and other economic problems increases child abuse and neglect, substance abuse, domestic violence, divorce, mental health crisis, homelessness and other issues.
“Adverse Childhood Experiences”
“The children living with these over-stressed adults are living through traumatic experiences—called ‘Adverse Childhood Experiences’—on a daily basis,” she said.
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