Conway Spitler

An innovative research project puts new focus on California’s 446 Billion-a-year Problem. An “average” high school graduate earns $290,000 more over a lifetime—and pays $100,00 more in federal, state and local taxes—than a high school dropout.

Between 26 percent and 35 percent of all teenagers in California today are high school dropouts.

One of every three students who dropped out of 10th grade in 2004 was doing nothing four years later—neither going to school nor working.

The problems costs the state’s taxpayers $6.4 billion annually (from UC Santa Barbara Today).