Presented by America's Promise and Penn Foster:

Don't Call Them Dropouts:
a virtual panel about "non-completers" and what it takes to raise graduation rates 

Tuesday, September 30, 2014 1PM ET / 10AM PT

Some young people are still failing to graduate high school despite historic advances in graduation rates. The phrase “high school dropouts” blames the student for not completing, but a report from America's Promise Alliance explains the interplay of circumstances which are preventing some young people from getting their diploma. 

Join a panel of experts from the education sector as they discuss: 

• Who are “non-completers” and what's causing them to leave the system
• The lived experience of young people who leave school without graduating
• What is the impact on local communities, businesses, and post-secondary schools
• What can be done to achieve the GradNation goal of 90%*
• What school districts can do to keep students in the system and improve graduation rates
• How post-secondary schools and businesses can contribute to the cause and benefit themselves 

*Based on a 2014 report from America’s Promise Alliance and its Center for Promise at Tufts University 

Meet the Moderator

Jonathan F. Zaff

Ray McNulty
Chairman Penn Foster High School Board, Chairman of National Dropout Prevention Center Network, & Dean of the School of Education at Southern New Hampshire University
Ray McNulty currently serves on the National Dropout Prevention Center/Network Board of Directors at Clemson University and is Dean at the School of Education at Southern New Hampshire University. He comes to Penn Foster from the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE) where he was President. Prior to joining ICLE, Mr. McNulty was a senior fellow at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where he worked with leading educators from around the country on improving high school education. Ray McNulty has worked in education since 1973, holding teaching, principal, and superintendent positions in Vermont. From 2001-03, he served as Vermont's education commissioner. 

Elayne Bennett
President & Founder, Best Friends Foundation
Elayne Bennett earned her B.A. and M.Ed. from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Mrs. Bennett serves as the President and Founder of the Best Friends Foundation. In addition to teaching the Foundation's character development curriculum and training educators throughout the country, Mrs. Bennett serves as a spokeswoman on issues of adolescent behavior and development.

Beth Reynolds
Executive Director, National Dropout Prevention Center Network
Dr. Reynolds holds a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the University of South Carolina and has 34 years of diverse educational experiences including roles as a teacher, high school principal, district assistant superintendent, statewide consultant for a non-profit agency, private consultant, adjunct professor, and published author. She is a recognized designer and facilitator of professional learning at the local, state, national, and international levels and is the co-author of two books for leaders on the use of research-based strategies to increase student learning and achievement.