 |
|
News
December 2, 2008
For immediate release
Russell Rumberger of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School awarded Borchard Foundation grant to conduct international colloquium on high school dropouts
Professor Russell Rumberger of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School has been awarded an Albert and Elaine Borchard Foundation grant to conduct the global colloquium “High School Dropout and Graduation – International Comparisons” to be held in Brittany, France, June 14-17, 2009. The purpose of this colloquium is to examine the nature of the dropout problem in advanced industrialized countries with the aim of developing a broader, international understanding that could lead to improved graduation rates worldwide. Experts from twelve Western countries will present case studies that address a set of common questions about the dropout problem in their country. A book including the participants’ presentations and chapters synthesizing themes will also be published.
“The issue of high school dropouts is a major concern among all industrialized countries,” Russ Rumberger says. “The colloquium will bring experts from 12 countries to share research on causes and solutions to this major educational challenge.”
The proposed participants of the colloquium are members of a larger association of scholars known as the International Research Network on Youth, Education, and Training (IRNYET). This network brings together scholars who are interested in the issues of education and training of adolescent youth and their successful transition into higher education and the workplace. The initial meetings of the network examined a range of issues on adolescent education and training. Members have now agreed to focus their efforts on the issue of high school dropout and graduation.
The proposed participants are Russell Rumberger, UC Santa Barbara, USA; Eifred Markussen, NIFU STEP, Norway; Stephen Lamb, University of Melbourne, Australia; Michel Janosz, University of Montreal, Canada; David Raffe, University of Edinburgh, Scotland; Lorna Unwin, University of London, England; Rafael Merino, University of Barcelona, Spain; Piotr Mikiewicz, University of Lower Silesia, Poland; Rudolf Tippeldt, University of München, Germany; Marianne Blanchard, University of Paris 7, France; Risto Rinne, University of Turku, Finland; and Jon Johanson, University of Iceland, Iceland.
Russ Rumberger is the director of the California Dropout Research Project. Rumberger has been conducting research on school dropouts for the past 25 years and has written over 40 research papers and essays on school dropouts. He also served as a member of the U.S. Department of Education’s National Institute of Statistical Sciences/Education Statistics Services Institute Task Force on Graduation, Completion, and Dropout Indicators (2004) and as a member of the National Research Council’s Committee on Increasing High School Students’ Engagement and Motivation to Learn (2003).
[Russ Rumberger is available for interviews; contact George Yatchisin at 805 893 5789]
– end –