NCJ Number
166195
Date Published
1994
Length
91 pages
Annotation
Between October 1993 and March 1994, personal interviews were conducted with 360 young black men between 17 and 22 years of age who were randomly drawn from census tracts in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Atlanta to find out why some young black men stayed in school and others did not.
Abstract
By design, half the young men interviewed had dropped out of high school; the other half were enrolled in school, had graduated, or had gone to college. Responses demonstrated the importance of schools and teachers in the lives of young black men. Those who dropped out of school had much weaker personal relationships with teachers, and those who stayed in school were more likely than those who dropped out of school to have been in an academic program. Most of those who stayed in school and those who dropped out of school reported their parents expected them to finish high school. Fewer parents of those who dropped out of school, however, were involved in supervising homework or in visiting teachers. Parental support was the most important factor that helped or would have helped young black men to stay in school. Findings showed having a job while in school may have been an important factor in retaining students, youth programs appeared to make a difference, and family finances played a critical role in determining who stayed in school. Those who stayed in school were more likely to have grown up in two-parent households, those who dropped out of school were more likely to have grown up in unstable families, and more of those who dropped out of school had been abused when they were growing up. The employment status was particularly bleak for those who dropped out of school, and those who dropped out of school were more likely than those who stayed in school to report having been arrested as both juvenile and adult offenders. Those who dropped out of school were more likely to have been crime victims, to have used both recreational and hard drugs, and to report higher depressive symptom rates. The survey questionnaires and selected press clippings are included. 7 figures