Philadelphia ponders link between two unfortunate rates

Two studies relating to Philadelphia released in the same week this month highlight the link between high school dropout rates and rates of incarceration. A study by a Washington criminal-justice think tank revealed that Philadelphia has the highest rate of incarceration in the country, while another study, by a Maryland-based nonprofit, reported that only half of Philadelphia’s students graduate from high school.

Educators know that children who attend high-quality preschool education programs are more likely to graduate from high school. We also know that children educated in small classes are more likely to master reading and math skills on schedule and graduate from high school on time. Nonetheless, the city spends about $24,000 per inmate per year, dwarfing the $9,951 a year Philadelphia spends to educate each of its 207,000 public and charter school students. Read more in this commentary by Jerry T. Jordan, president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers in The Philadelphia Inquirer online.