More students have dropped out of Albuquerque Public Schools this year than last.
Associate Superintendent Mark Garcia said the dropout rate for the first semester of this school year is up to 1.8%, compared to 1.5% for the same time last year.
He said APS is projecting the full-year rate to be 5.2%, versus 4.2% for 2022-23.
Garcia said officials are already working on the issue. He said officials are looking at data on students’ habits and mindsets and at root causes that lead some to quit school.
Why are kids quitting school?
According to one APS survey, 44% of APS ninth-graders reported feeling “slightly” or “not at all” connected to an adult on campus.
“This was a huge red flag, a call to action for us,” Garcia said.
Other possible causes include inconsistent transitions from middle school to high school and a lack of opportunities for students to recover credit.
Support key to turnaround
Garcia said APS will respond to the issue by supporting ninth-grade students and their families more.
He said the district has been using interventions for students at risk of dropping out; looking at attendance, behavior and academic performance data to identify those students
“But now we’re also adding agency, belonging and connectedness,” Garcia said, adding that a district-wide credit recovery strategy is being developed.
Board President Danielle Gonzales asked which student groups struggle the most and the barriers they face in completing their studies.
Garcia said English language learners are among those who struggle. He said the lack of a sense of belonging can lead to poor attendance, which affects academic performance.
“If you don’t feel like you belong in a space and you have no connection, your attendance begins to decline,” Garcia said. “And we know that when attendance declines, it’s hard to keep up your class. And when you can’t keep up with class and you fail a course, it’s a spiral. And that’s where we as adults … need to intervene, intervene early, and support that student.”
Gonzales also asked about key out-of-school factors that might hinder students from completing high school, including food and housing insecurity.
Garcia acknowledged those factors and said APS is connecting students and their families to resources that can help with those barriers.
AP on track with postsecondary goals
Garcia spoke during an update to the board on progress related to postsecondary readiness, one of four goals outlined in the district’s Emerging Stronger strategic plan.
His presentation also covered efforts to increase the levels of students enrolling in and completing more college or advanced academic courses and earning industry certifications or bilingual seals.
Garcia said that while APS is not on track to meet its 2028 goal of lowering the dropout rate, it is on pace for its other postsecondary readiness goals.
He said that one-third of district high school sophomores have been identified as having “AP potential,” a reference to enrollment in advanced placement courses.
Garcia said House Bill 171, which passed this year and updated graduation requirements, presents an opportunity for APS to make changes that will benefit students’ postsecondary readiness. He said the law requires next-step plans for all eighth-graders, and the plans will help steer those students toward pathways as they enter high school, with some bound immediately for AP classes.
Garcia said that the district’s progress in seeing students earn bilingual seals is worth celebrating. A student can earn a bilingual seal on his or her high school diploma by completing a dual-language program. Garcia said 1,392 earned them in 2022-23, compared to 191 in the program’s infancy in the 2016-2017 school year.
Board member Josefina Dominguez asked about strategies for using culturally or linguistically relevant instruction.
Garcia said the strategy starts with using high-quality instructional materials in the classroom that are culturally relevant.
“That’s the first thing that we can do,” he said. “ And then also moving it along to family engagement. And when schools plan family engagement activities, are they thinking about all the different persons within the community?”
How to participate
The Board of Education next meets Wednesday, May 1 at 5 p.m. in the John Milne Community Board Room at district headquarters, 6400 Uptown Blvd. It will also be viewable on the APS Board of Education YouTube Channel.