Graduation Coaches in Middle Schools

Governor Sonny Perdue says that he wants to have graduation coaches in Georgia's middle school, adding to the number of counselors presently in schools. The counselors have already arrived in many of the state's high schools this fall to reduce the high number of high school drop-outs.s

The Republican governor has made graduation coaches for Georgia high schools a high-profile part of the election-year educaiton agenda, which he pushed through the state legislature this spring. These coaches are supposed to help identify students who are at rish of failing to graduate and then to match those students up with tutoring, mentoring, and other assistance so they can earn diplomas.

Perdue says if he is re-elected in November he will ask for around twenty to twenty-five million dollars so he can put the graduation coaches in Georgia's 450 middle schools next fall. However, not everybody is for this action. According to a recent news source, out of the state's 385 high schools, 49 of them will decline the state funding for the councelors.

The superintendent of the Paulding County School District, Trudy Sowar says that the state funding-- $40,000 for each graduation coach-- will not cover the full cost of the position and thus cash-strapped local districts are left paying the difference. The state has financed $21 million for the graduation coaches.

However, Perdue says that already the new high school coaches have identified 40,000 students who have fallen behind in attaining the credits they will need to graduate with. The governor says that having the coaches in the middle schools would allow them to begin exploring career choices with the studenets at earlier ages and then help them select the appropriate high school courses.

Sam McCloud, Associate Editor