Successful dropout prevention program in Washington state faces uncertain future

A state program that helps prevent Washington students from dropping out of high school may be in jeopardy if lawmakers don't step in.

The state Legislature is considering a bill to continue — and expand — the "Ninth Grade Success" program.

Since launching in 2019 as a pilot in five schools, the program is now in 68 schools and touches 19,000 students across Washington. Senate Bill 5210, and its companion House Bill 1151, would take the program statewide. It's expected to cost about $773,000 in the next biennium.

Recent data shows that, at schools participating in program, the percentage of ninth-graders passing all of their classes is nearly seven points higher than the state average.

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Ninth grade is a critical year in a student's life, as they make the big transition to high school. State data shows students are up to four times more likely to graduate on time if they pass all of their classes during that first year.

Rebecca Dodt has seen that firsthand as a biology teacher at Everett High School.

"It is 100% make or break," she said. "They'll fail one class — maybe even just because they are missing some skill and were afraid to ask for help — and the entire trajectory of their educational experience is off."

Dodt believes the "Ninth Grade Success" program has made her a better teacher.

"It is some of the most valuable work I've done in my career," she said.

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Here's how the program works: Schools form “success teams” of teachers, administrators, and a coach. Those teams gather regularly to review data on student attendance, behavior, and grades, so they can identify — and intervene — if a student is falling behind.

Sometimes those data reviews reveal greater issues affecting more than just one student.

Earlier this year, the team at Dodt's school noticed an "embarrassingly high failure rate" on a summative research project.

"It was our first time doing it," Dodt said, "and we were a little surprised by how much they struggled."

Students were supposed to create an experiment to figure out whether a proposed solution to reduce human harm on the environment was effective. One student, for example, examined whether tearing down the Elwha Dam actually restored salmon populations.

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Teachers spent several days walking students through the research project with specific steps and "to do" lists. Still, it didn't go well. Dodt later realized the assignment was a bit too advanced.

Rather than just letting that many students fail, Dodt reworked the assignment and walked those struggling through it. She also gave extra support to students who had never turned in the project, and allowed them to earn partial credit.

"Having these little opportunities to just kind of find creative ways to get the system to work for our kids has been really helpful," Dodt said. "We wouldn't have been able to do that without Ninth Grade Success teams — to have that space to think about how to do it and also the collaboration and time and the ability to pay for subs an hour here and there."

That spirit of collaboration has made a noticeable impact at both Everett and Cascade high schools, since starting the program three years ago.

"There's a great sense of belonging and community that's happening at the schools — and it's contagious," said Jeanne Willard, executive director of college and career readiness at Everett Public Schools. "We are seeing teachers really come together."

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But, Willard said, it may not be able to continue without state funding to cover the cost of coaches and substitute teachers, so that teachers have time to work with their success teams.

"We would probably try the best we can to continue this work," she said. "But with so many different pressing needs on our schools, we wouldn't have the tools to do that in the same way."

Friday is the cutoff for state lawmakers to decide whether to advance measures to continue funding Ninth Grade Success.