New report examines, from the perspective of young people themselves, the roles that relationships with adults and peers play in decisions about staying in, leaving and returning to high school. Building on previous studies, including last year’s Don’t Call Them Dropouts, this report offers new insights about how support from adults and peers can help to close the remaining gaps between those who graduate from high school on time and those who don’t.

1. What Young People Who Left School
Say About the Power of Relationships

2. Last year, we set out to
understand why nearly
500,000
young people leave high
school each year.
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3. | Don’t Quit On Me 3
how we
can help.
This year,
we asked them

4. We went right to the source.
58%
42%
And here’s what we heard…
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS
120+ young adults
16 groups in 8 cities
19 individual interviews
in 6 cities
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SURVEY
2,800 young people
ages 18 to 25
58% continuous enrollment
42% interrupted enrollment

5. They’ve got the resources I need,
you know what I’m saying?
They’ve got the respect that I need,
you know what I’m saying?
…RESOURCES and RESPECT, man…
when they open their doors, they
open their arms too. You feel it.”
Carson*
| Don’t Quit On Me 5*Name changed to protect privacy

6. | Don’t Quit On Me 6

7. G A N G I N V O LV E M E N T
DRUG USE
Loss of a Parent
Regular Care Giver
Foster System Suspended or Expelled
Lack of Preparation for High School
ENDURED ABUSE
HOMELESSNESS
Changed Residential Location
Changed Schools
Gave Birth/Fathered a Child
Major Mental Health Issue
TOO MANY HURDLES, TOO LITTLE HELP
Most friends dropped out
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8. Young people who left
school without graduating
experienced twice as many
adverse life events as youth
who graduated on time.
More than half those
who left school without
graduating experienced
5 or more adverse life events
between the ages
of 14 and 18.
TOO MANY HURDLES, TOO LITTLE HELP
Kids who leave school
before graduating face
much more adversity
than their peers who
graduate on time.
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9. TOO MANY HURDLES, TOO LITTLE HELP
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7 Threats to Graduation
• Becoming a parent
• Being suspended or expelled
• Having most friends drop out
• Not feeling academically prepared for school
• Experiencing major mental health issue
• Being homeless
• Moving homes

10. 2xAS LIKELY
to reach out
to “no one”
AS LIKELY
to reach out
to a teacher½
TOO MANY HURDLES, TOO LITTLE HELP
Young people who left school
without graduating were
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11. At eight years old, I had a good life…till
my father passed away. Then my mother
became depressed. Me and my brother
went into the system. I don’t know how
to explain it. I felt lost. Like I went to eight
different foster cares in all. Me and my
brother separated…
There was so much in my head going on
that I fell down.”
Maxwell*
| Don’t Quit On Me 11*Name changed to protect privacy
littleny / Shutterstock.com
TOO MANY HURDLES, TOO LITTLE HELP

12. | Don’t Quit On Me 12

13. RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
Too many young people
who leave school without
graduating are experiencing
a kind of relationship poverty.
They don’t have enough people in their
lives who can provide the type of support
they need.
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14. RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
The SOURCE and TYPE matter.
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Reduces Likelihood Of
Leaving School By
Overall support from adults in school 25%
Instrumental and emotional support from adults in school and from parents 20%
Instrumental support from adults outside of school 17%
Informational support from friends 24%

15. RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
For young people
experiencing medium levels
of risk, high support from
both parents and adults
outside school makes
uninterrupted enrollment
11 percentage points more
likely than high support from
parents alone. Adding a third
source of support – friends –
boosts likely continuous
enrollment by another
5 percentage points.
The NUMBER matters.
The more sources of support, the better
the chance to graduate without interruption.
Social supports from multiple sources buffer
the effects of adverse life experiences for
most young people.
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16. RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
RELATIONSHIPS
buffer adversity.
For young people reporting medium
levels of risk (2 to 4 adverse life events),
social support really matters.
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Even at medium risk,
students with more than
one source of support
were able to maintain
above a 65% graduation
rate.

17. RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
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For young people reporting
5 or more adverse life events,
social support alone does
little; the hurdles are too
high. Uninterrupted
enrollment stays well below
50%, even with high support
from multiple sources.
In interviews, we heard that
relationships still matter, but
they must include efforts to
resolve trauma, health
problems, and social and
economic barriers.
RELATIONSHIPS
buffer adversity – to a point.
Young people with the highest levels of
adversity need more intensive supports.

18. RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
RELATIONSHIPS enable
young people to redirect
internal strengths.
With supportive relationships in their lives,
young people are able to draw on their own
strengths and focus on academic success.
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Young people with high
self-control and high support
are 15 percentage points more
likely to graduate without
interruption than those with
high self-control and low
support (73.8% vs. 58.4%).

19. They’ve [Kyle and Jorge] been there for
me for a long time. They’ve been
pushing, helping me. Even through all my
flaws, they still help me get through it.
They’ll come check with me, take me to
play basketball…see if everything’s okay...
make sure I get to school on time…
Just basically staying on top of me, and
as they do, I’m starting to get the hang
of it myself.”
Terrence*
RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
| Don’t Quit On Me 19*Name changed to protect privacy

20. | Don’t Quit On Me 20

21. Some young people may
be standing in a room that
contains all the support they
need, but they need someone
else to turn on the lights so
they can see what’s there
and reach for it.
AN ANCHOR AND A WEB
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22. AN ANCHOR AND A WEB
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An ANCHOR
helps stabilize.
Young people
need someone
they trust.

23. An ANCHOR
is not enough.
Young people
need a web of
support.
AN ANCHOR AND A WEB
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24. An ANCHOR
can be a gateway
to a wider web
of support.
AN ANCHOR AND A WEB
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25. The more sources
of support young
people have, the
better their chances
to graduate high
school.
AN ANCHOR AND A WEB
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26. When it comes to transportation,
it’s Ms. C, Ms. D and Ms. J. When it
comes to education, it’s all of them.
When it comes to, like I just want to
get stuff off my chest, it’s all of them.
When it gets really personal, to
where I would get upset and shut
down and block people out at some
points, it would be Ms. W and Ms. J.”
Carlie*
AN ANCHOR AND A WEB
| Don’t Quit On Me 26*Name changed to protect privacy

27. | Don’t Quit On Me 27

28. SO WHAT CAN WE DO?
No matter their internal assets, young people need support from those around
them to succeed in school and in life.
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29. Everyone can…
• Listen
• Connect
• Start a conversation
• Be a mentor, tutor, or coach
DON’T QUIT ON ME
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30. Educators can…
• Make it harder to leave school
• Make it easier to return to school
• Bring the web of support into the classroom
• Invest in building relationships
• Leverage students’ strengths
• End zero-tolerance disciplinary policies
• Engage young people as peer supporters
DON’T QUIT ON ME
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31. Community leaders can…
• Assess risks and resources
• Improve the odds that all young people
have an Anchor
• Engage healthcare professionals
• Include social support systems in community
change efforts
• See education and youth services as an
investment in your economy and your future
DON’T QUIT ON ME
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32. GradNation.org/DontQuit | #NotDropouts
A FOLLOW-UP REPORT TO DON’T CALL THEM DROPOUTS