"Almost 8 percent of high school students, 710 youths, dropped out in Des Moines in 2007-08, according to information the district released this month. That number was up from 505 in 2006-07 and 429 in 2005-06. About 7,300 students statewide dropped out in 2007-08. The biggest jump was in the number of 11th- and 12th graders who dropped out – 645 in 2007-08 compared with 193 in 2005-06." ----- The Des Moines Register, February 24, 2009.

Many communities face a silent epidemic year after year, one third to one half or more of the primarily low-income and minority students they educate in their public school systems fail to graduate from high school. Decades ago, this would not have been a crisis. Factory jobs provided an avenue for employment and upward mobility for young adults without high school degrees. Today, the unemployment rate for young adults without a high school diploma is staggering. As a result, failure to graduate from high school has become a ticket to the underclass. For a single individual this can be tragic, but when the majority or near majority of students from entire neighborhoods and communities fail to graduate, the social and economic costs are profound and far reaching.

Over a decade's worth of research, development and direct action confronting the dropout crisis indicates that, while it is not easy, quick or cost-free, this is a crisis than can be alleviated by a combination of effort and policy. Moreover, it is worth doing. Pick your issue – improving the economic vitality of a community, cutting its crime rate, reducing its social welfare costs, expanding its middle class, reducing concentrated poverty, or achieving social justice – stopping the dropout crisis in a community is a means to achieve it. – What Your Community Can Do to End its Drop-Out Crisis, John Hopkins University, May, 2007.

In 2007/2008, Iowa Comprehensive Human Services participated in a Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (DOL/ETA) funded project Multiple Education Pathways Blueprint (MEPB) with the City of Des Moines, Des Moines Area Community College, Des Moines Public Schools and various other human service agencies. The group has published its final report, "Blueprint For Success".

One of the findings of the "Blueprint For Success" report was that central Iowa needed a place where dropouts could reengage with the education system. Re-engagement, also referred to as reentry, reconnection, retention, and recovery, encompasses strategies for connecting individuals who have dropped out of school and the education system whether that be academic or the vocational system. A re-engagement center provides a "one stop" entry point for youth and young adults to be assessed, (transcripts, credits, needs for social services and or mental health referrals) and subsequently referred to the appropriate outlet that will support them to reengage in an educational career pathway.

According to the most recent census, there are 8,664 non graduates 18-24 years of age within the greater Des Moines area and this number is expected to increase with the 2010 census. The success of every young person in the Des Moines area is essential to economic development and progress in our state. The Greater Des Moines Partnership reported in 2007 that central Iowa might experience a shortfall of 60,000 workers over the next decade. One obvious source of these workers that needs to be tapped are the dropouts. Many agencies in central Iowa have exerted tremendous efforts to decrease the dropout population with intervention programs. While this works with some, many young people continue to drop out.

Des Moines is experiencing the same education crisis as many other major urban areas across the nation. The crisis includes increased poverty, student apathy regarding the need for a high school diploma, and a clear lack of understanding that nearly every high-growth, high-demand career choice will require greater than a 12th grade education. This is not to say that every student needs a college degree, but every student must be able to learn technical skills and create new solutions.

Ideally, re-engagement programs work by helping out-of-school youth reenroll in high school so that they are able to graduate with a high school diploma. A number of students however, are unable to take this traditional path to high school completion and alternative pathways must be offered. There needs to be flexible options for individuals who are parents and those who must work during the day. ICHS witnessed successful re-engagement centers in Philadelphia and Portland and with funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, ICHS was able to open the Central Iowa Reengagement Center located at 1200 University, Suite 100 in August of 2009.

As of April 15, 2010, the Center has served over 500 clients with 71 of them receiving their GED's and two have returned to complete their high school education.