Guest Author - Sandy Mullins

There is a joke in my family about my soapbox. It folds up and when I bring it out everybody that knows that I will not give up until I get my point across. Well, this times subject is education of our children. Watching Oprah the past few days I was appalled to see the equality in our schools and education here in America.

Take a look at the expected drop out rates for ninth-graders:
• Every 26 seconds a student drops out.
• 1/3 of the high school students will drop out.
• ½ African-Americans will drop out.
• 74% of drop outs wish they hadn’t.
• 60% of drop outs will remain jobless.

You might think to yourself that your children are getting a great education, are you sure of that? One young lady top of her senior class, a straight A student, ended up in junior college instead of the top Ivy League University and even there had trouble keeping up. You know for sure your child is in a great school receiving a great education, why should you worry about education of American Youth? Besides, the moral issues of a better life? When society is all educated equally, not only is there less joblessness, people on welfare, abuse, neglect, crime rates lower and we spend less money caring for those in prison. With a better education there are also less prejudices and hatred.

Bill (Microsoft) and Melinda Gates and their foundation (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) have help to create the St^nd Up Coalition and have more than 50 community-based schools that are helping better educate our children. They and educational organizations and people all over America are joining together to demand a solution to the educational crisis in America.

You too must St^nd Up to make a difference for our children and our children’s children. Take a moment and watch the video at St^nd Up Website. Check out your schools’ statistics at the second website and see how your school measures up with the other schools. Also check out a few of the other websites affiliated with St^nd Up and possibly find a way that you can help America’s Children.

St^nd Up (offsite link)
Check out your school (offsite link)
Americas Promise (offsite link)

Check out the other links for Communites in Action, High School Alliance and Junior Acheivement.