For Robert K. Ross, the president and CEO of The California Endowment, the plight of black boys and youth in this country is deeply personal. After months of thinking about the issue, he’s emerged with a call to create an early warning system that will tip off schools and communities when these young men start to head off track. Chronic absence is one of his indicators, as is third-grade reading. Suspensions from school, likewise, can signal that a student needs help. Dr. Ross challenges us to work together to use these indicators to develop a systemic approach that can “ dismantle a systemic beast of stigmatization, marginalization, criminalization, and incarceration that engulfs our young men.”
via Early Warning Signs for Black Male Youth: Chronic Absence, 3rd Grade Reading & Suspension.