"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Cities in Crisis": New Report and National Campaign Focus on the High School Dropout Crisis in the United States; (2) "Measuring and Improving the Effectiveness of High School Teachers": New Alliance Brief Says It Will Take More than Merit Pay to Raise Teacher Performance; (3) "Education and Economic Growth": Economists Find that Students' Performance in Math and Science Can Impact Economic Growth; and (4) NAEP [National Assessment of Educational Progress] 2007 Writing Scores Released: More Students Performing At or Above Basic, Yet Majority Still Below Grade Level. (Contains 2 footnotes.)