Each school year, roughly a thousand students drop out of Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS). However, unlike other large, urban school districts where students who drop out skip school and are suspended often (Balfanz & Byrnes, 2010), students who drop out of MCPS are present in school; they just are not doing well…

Forty years ago, 96% of six-year-old children were enrolled in first grade or above. As of 2005, the figure was just 84%. The school attendance rate of six-year-olds has not decreased; rather, they are increasingly likely to be enrolled in kindergarten rather than first grade. This paper documents this historical shift. We show that only about a…

The purpose of the Early Elementary Attendance Project was to improve school attendance in the early grades (kindergarten and first grade) in order to develop good attendance habits that would continue through the post elementary grades. A home/school worker approached families of students (N=77) with poor attendance records with a helping…

Presents the results of a study that tracked the educational progress of a group of first graders from 1982 to 1996. Examines the children's personal qualities, first-grade experiences, and family circumstances as precursors to dropping out in high school. Identifies dropping out as a long-term process of disengagement. (MJP)

The ScholarshipBuilder Program, an adopt-a-class program, began in November 1988 to encourage selected first-grade students to stay in school until graduation in the year 2000. Scholarships will be provided by Merrill Lynch, Incorporated, for students who go on to college, and a one-time stipend will be provided to students who enter the military…