Lowering the student dropout rate in America is one of the most significant challenges facing educators today. This book calls attention to this problem, and offers hope and suggestions on how to resolve it using effective strategies taken from research and personal observations gleaned from successful dropout prevention programs in school settings across America. The book is divided into seven parts. Part 1 identifies the dropout problem, describes the educational and social factors that help create it, describes the types of students who drop out, and explores why they drop out. Part 2 draws on observation and research to identify strategies for dropout prevention, and lists and explores 15 effective strategies for dropout prevention. Part 3 explores early intervention. Part 4 describes four potent strategies for dropout prevention: mentoring, service learning, alternative schooling, and out-of-school enhancement. Part 5 looks into classroom strategies for dropout prevention, such as devoting resources to the professional development of teachers and expanding teaching methods to accommodate a range of learning styles. Part 6 discusses the roles teachers, parents, and other community members can play to prevent student dropout. Part 7 provides a wider, global perspective on the problems of student dropout in other countries. Each chapter concludes with a list of references. (RT)