Helping Girls Stay in School: Spotlight on Pregnant and Parenting Teens

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Helping Girls Stay in School Spotlight on
Pregnant and Parenting Teens
NAPE/Women Work! Conference April 2008

• Kristina Gupta, National Womens Law Center
• Taryn Wilgus Null, National Womens Law Center
• Abby Kahn, Healthy Teen Network

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When Girls Dont Graduate, We All Fail A Call to
Improve High School Graduation Rates for Girls
Kristina Gupta, Policy Fellow National Womens
Law Center
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Thesis

• Nationally, 25 of girls do not graduate from
  high school on time with a standard diploma.
  Rates for girls of color are even worse.
• The consequences of dropping out may be
  particularly steep for girls women without a
  high school diploma are more likely to be
  unemployed, report lower-earnings, suffer from
  health problems, and depend on government
  programs for support.

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Graduation Rates and Dropout Rates from the
Department of Education
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Graduation Rates from the EPE Research Center

• National Graduate Rate (2003-2004) 69.9 of
  students graduate on-time, with a standard
  diploma
• More than 1 in 4 students will not graduate in 4
  years with a standard diploma
• Graduation rate for males 66.0 Graduation rate
  for females 73.6

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Graduation Rates by Gender and Race, 2003-2004
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Percent of females who do not graduate on time
with a standard diploma, by state, 2003-2004
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Consequences of Dropping Out Unemployment,
2005-2006
Source Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics, Table 1. Labor force status of 2006
high school graduates and 2005-06 high school
dropouts 16 to 24 years old by school enrollment,
sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity,
October 2006
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Unemployment continued

• Women in particular improve their employment
  status by earning a high school diploma

Source U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population
Survey, 2007 Annual Social and Economic Supplement
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Consequences Low Earnings
Source U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population
Survey, 2007 Annual Social and Economic Supplement
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Low Earnings continued

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Consequences Health

• Dropouts report poorer health than high school
  graduates. High school dropouts have higher rates
  of mortality premature death due to
  cardiovascular disease and cancer smoking
  obesity heavy drinking
• Dropouts are less likely to be insured. 42 of
  dropouts are uninsured, as are 24 of high school
  graduates, and only 9 of non-elderly college
  graduates.

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Consequences Pregnancy

• Dropping out may increase the chance of pregnancy

• Children of dropouts are themselves more likely
  to dropout

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Consequences Taxes

• As a result of their higher employment rates and
  earnings, high school graduates on average pay
  significantly more in taxes than high school
  dropouts.
• Example a White female high school graduate pays
  104 more, or 79,672, in income taxes than a
  White female dropout

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Consequences Public Support Programs

• Over the course of their lives, high school
  dropouts must rely more upon public support
  programs, such as welfare programs and public
  health resources like Medicaid, than high school
  graduates.

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Public Support Programs continued
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Public Support Programs continued

• Having a high school diploma lowers the
  probability of receiving TANF benefits by 40 and
  food stamps by 19
• Those with at least some college reduce their
  chances of receiving TANF benefits by 62,
  housing assistance by 35, and food stamps by 45

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Improving graduation rates for girls is good for
girls and good for society!
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The Dropout Crisis and Title IX

• Taryn Wilgus Null
• MARGARET Fund Fellow
• National Women's Law Center

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Why Do Students Drop Out?

• Student Family Characteristics
• Low socioeconomic status
• Single parent family
• Low level of parental involvement
• Race or ethnicity (Black, Hispanic and Native
  American students generally have increased odds,
  and Asian students decreased odds, compared to
  White students)

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Why Do Students Drop Out?

• School characteristics
• Public school
• Low average socioeconomic status of school
  community
• High levels of minority student enrollment
• High number of students disciplined or held back
• A perception that the discipline policy is unfair
  

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Why Do Students Drop Out?

• Student Attitudes Toward Experiences at School
• Being disciplined at school
• Poor grades
• Irrelevant coursework
• Lack of future educational plans
• Negative peer perceptions
• Being held back
• Frequently changing schools
• Absenteeism
• Feeling unsafe at school
• Working during school year
• Becoming pregnant or taking on parenting
  responsibilities

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Which factors are more likely to lead girls to
drop out?

• Missing too many days of school and not being
  able to keep up with schoolwork
• Sexual harassment
• For some girls, academic reasons and disciplinary
  reasons
• Growing up in a single-mother family
• Pregnancy and parenting responsibilities

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Pregnancy and parenting responsibilities are a
factor for a significant percentage of female
dropouts.

• One-third of female dropouts say that pregnancy
  or becoming a parent played a role in their
  decision to leave school.
• Those who left school to care for a family member
  or because they became a parent were most likely
  to say they would have worked harder if their
  schools had demanded more of them and provided
  the necessary support.

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Barriers faced by pregnant and parenting students

• Insufficient time to recover after giving birth
• Teachers wont allow them to make up work missed
• Not allowed to receive student recognition
• No child care
• Transportation issues

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• Title IX contains a basic non-discrimination
  principle namely, that schools must treat
  pregnancy and all related conditions like any
  other temporary disability. Title IX also
  creates some requirements specific to pregnant
  and parenting students.

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Title IX Requirements

• Equal access to school and extracurricular
  activities.
• Special programs or schools for pregnant and
  parenting students must be voluntary.
• Doctors note can be required for school
  activities only if the school requires a doctors
  note from all students who have conditions that
  require medical care.
• Absences due to pregnancy or childbirth must be
  excused for as long as is deemed medically
  necessary by the students doctor.
• Special services for temporarily disabled must be
  provided for pregnant students.

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Some state laws provide additional protections.

• North Carolina (N.C.G.S.A. 115C-375.5)
• A students absences due to the illness or
  medical appointment during school hours of her
  child must be excused if she is the custodial
  parent.
• Homework and make-up work shall be made available
  to pregnant and parenting students during
  absences and, to the extent necessary, a
  homebound teacher shall be assigned.

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Recommendations

• Individualized graduation plans
• Excused absences for illness of or medical
  appointments for a students child
• Make-up work allowed for excused absences
• Access to social services
• Necessary physical accommodations
• Outreach to dropouts

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The Importance of Education for Pregnant and
Parenting Students andStrategies to Keep Them in
School

• NAPE/Women Work! Conference April 2008

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By the end of this presentation, you will be able
to

• Identify benefits of completing high school for
  pregnant and parenting (P/P) youth
• Identify unique challenges facing P/P youth
• Identify barriers to completing high school
  facing P/P youth
• Identify actions steps to addressing these
  barriers

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1. What are the Benefits for P/P Youth of
Completing High School?
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Benefits to P/P Youth

• More likely to avoid unemployment
• More likely to avoid poverty
• More likely to continue with post-secondary
  education

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Benefits for Children of Teen Parents

• More likely to complete high school themselves
• More likely to break cycle of poverty
• More likely to break cycle of teen pregnancy

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Benefits for the Public

• More likely to avoid reliance on public
  assistance
• TANF, food stamps, housing assistance
• Its a good investment
• P/P youth want to stay in school
• Higher lifetime tax revenues

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2. What Challenges Do P/P Youth Face?
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Potential Challenges Facing P/P Youth

• Financial instability
• Need for child care services
• Lack of stable and supportive housing
• Unreliable transportation
• Involvement with interpersonal violence
• Lack of supportive adults and peers

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3. What Barriers Prevent P/P Students from
Completing High School?
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Barriers Preventing P/P Students from Completing
High School

• STRESS!!
• Decreased Attendance/Increased Tardies
• Diminished academic achievement
• Failure to believe that education is valuable
• Discouragement to continue working toward high
  school diploma

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Why Dont P/P Youth Seek Support?

• Supportive services are not readily available.
• Students are not aware of available supportive
  services.
• P/P students arent aware of their rights to an
  equitable education under the law.
• Schools arent aware of their obligation to
  provide an equitable education to P/P students.

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4. What are Some Action Steps to Address Barriers
to P/P Youth Graduating?
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Potential Sources of Support Available to P/P
Students

• Co-parents
• Families
• Peers
• Schools
• Community-based organizations (CBOs)
• Public agencies

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Schools

• Designate and train Title IX Coordinators!
• Create access to Social services and case
  management Child care Classes in parenting
  skills, prenatal care, and child development
  Transportation assistance Mentoring programs
• Ensure Alternative scheduling and attendance
  arrangements Physical accommodations
• Monitor Educational progress of P/P students
  Individualized graduation plans
• Increase Outreach efforts to re-enroll students
  who have already dropped out Transition support
  to post-secondary education, training, or
  employment services

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Community-Based Organizations (CBOs)

• Find out what is going on in your school/district
• Educate P/P youth, school administrators, the
  public about their rights under Title IX
• Provide P/P youth with referrals to supportive
  services
• Advocate for P/P students in your communities

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Model Program and Policy

• Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Teen
  Parenting Program and Policy Bulletin on
  Pregnant and Parenting Students Educational
  Rights
• Seek out and educate P/P students about their
  rights
• Commitment to make reasonable adjustments as
  with other medical conditions
• Acknowledge right to confidentiality
• Provide the option of enrollment at 1 of 2
  pregnant minor high schools w/in district
• Offer limited child care services at school-based
  centers
• Link P/P youth with case management services
• Advocate for continued non-discrimination

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Lets Hear From You!

• What have your experiences been working with P/P
  youth in high school?
• Success stories?
• Challenges?

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For more information, contact

• Healthy Teen Network
• Web www.HealthyTeenNetwork.org
• Email Abby_at_HealthyTeenNetwork.org
• Phone [phone]

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References

• E.g., Goldschmidt, P. Wang, J. (1999). When Can
  Schools Affect Dropout Behavior? A Longitudinal
  Multilevel Analysis. American Educational
  Research Journal, 36, 725.
• By the Numbers. National Campaign to Prevent Teen
  Pregnancy.
• When Girls Dont Graduate, We all Fail. National
  Womens Law Center.
• School-Based Programs for Adolescent Parents and
  Their Young Children. 1997. Center for Assessment
  and Policy Development.